EPISODE 11: A Tale of Two Tan Sris

The PAS leaders in Selangor know about this but they do not dare raise the matter for the sake of Pakatan Rakyat solidarity. With their internal party problems and Hassan Ali barking like a dog in heat, they can ill-afford another controversy. But they are quietly lobbying in the background for PKR to drop Khalid in the next election lest this matter becomes an election issue.

THE CORRIDORS OF POWER

Raja Petra Kamarudin

Azmin Ali is up in arms. He is grumbling that Selangor Menteri Besar Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim is bypassing the ‘correct channels’ in making decisions. He means, of course, that the ‘correct channel’ is Anwar Ibrahim, the Economic Advisor of Selangor who himself has complained that most times he is kept in the dark about what is going on in Selangor.

I can believe this because this was exactly what Anwar told me when we met in London in 2010. In fact, Anwar was even more blunt in his criticism of the Menteri Besar. He said that Khalid was stubborn and had a huge ego and would not ‘listen to advice’. My retort was: you created the monster so why can’t you just un-create what you created? (In fact, I wrote about this before).

Anyway, there appears to be a showdown between Azmin and Khalid looming over the horizon -- reminiscent of a similar showdown cum power struggle and turf war that he had with Ezam Mohd Noor, which resulted in the latter leaving PKR in a huff to join Umno.

Whisperings are spreading through the corridors of power of the Selangor State Secretariat. And what is being whispered is that Tan Sri Lim Kim Hong is a man in a hurry. He is not sure whether Pakatan Rakyat will still be in power in Selangor come Christmas Day. So he wants to seal all his deals before then.

France had its ‘Tale of Two Cities’, which tore France apart. Selangor has its ‘Tale of Two Tan Sris’. And this is also threatening to tear Selangor apart.

People have been talking about the relationship between Tan Sri Lim Kim Hong and Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim for some time now. It is not a secret that their relationship goes back a long time to 1994 when Khalid first picked up his stake in Guthrie.

Khalid initially bought 5% of Guthrie for RM125 million, according to The Asian Wall Street Journal on 17 June 1994 (read the news item below). To partly fund this purchase, Khalid borrowed about RM66 million from Bank Islam. Bank Islam later sued Khalid for recovery of the unpaid loan.

The question being asked is: where did Khalid get the difference from? According to Azmin, Lim Kim Hong was the person who funded Khalid and now, as payback time, Lim is being given lucrative jobs in Selangor.

These jobs run into the billions and Azmin is pissed big time. Well, we have Lim Kang Hoo doing multi-billion jobs in the Federal Territory with the backing of the Federal Territory Minister, Raja Nong Chik (READ MORE HERE: http://malaysia-today.net/mtcolumns/47156-episode-5-the-raja-nong-chik-saga). And then we have Lim Kim Hong doing the same in neighbouring Selangor with the backing of Khalid Ibrahim (READ ALL THE REPORTS BELOW).

The PAS leaders in Selangor know about this but they do not dare raise the matter for the sake of Pakatan Rakyat solidarity. With their internal party problems and Hassan Ali barking like a dog in heat, they can ill-afford another controversy. But they are quietly lobbying in the background for PKR to drop Khalid in the next election lest this matter becomes an election issue.

As the Malays would say: Melayu berkuasa, Cina yang kaya. It is very nice being a Chinese, especially if your surname is Lim. Hmm..is that why Lim Goh Tong made it big? And wasn’t it another Malay politician, Tunku Abdul Rahman, who was backing that now dead Lim?

Well, if you need to be born a Chinese just make sure you carry the surname Lim.

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PNB Chief Moves to Guthrie With Lucrative Share Deal

(The Asian Wall Street Journal, 17 June 1994) -- The chief executive of Malaysia’s huge national investment corporation will leave his post with a hefty golden handshake and the promise of more gains to come.

Permodalan Nasional Bhd. said Thursday that Abdul Khalid Ibrahim will acquire up to 20% of its publicly listed subsidiary, Kumpulan Guthrie Bhd., when he leaves his post as PNB chief executive on July 1 to become Guthrie‘s deputy chairman and chief executive officer. Datuk Khalid will initially buy a 5% stake in Guthrie, or 50 million shares, for 125 million ringgit or 2.50 ringgit a share. He will also have a three-year option to buy an additional 15% of Guthrie at a price to be determined.

Guthrie stock closed Thursday at 3.96 ringgit per share, up 24 sen. That means Datuk Khalid will enjoy an immediate windfall, on paper, of about 73 million ringgit. But Datuk Khalid said at a press conference that he intends to hold his Guthrie stake as a long-term investment, and plans to expand the company. “PNB wants Guthrie to be a corporation that could challenge . . . other multinationals in Malaysia and elsewhere,” he said.

Guthrie, one of Malaysia’s biggest plantation concerns, last year made a pre-tax profit of 101.4 million ringgit on revenue of 1.05 billion ringgit. The company currently is 90% owned by PNB, a government-created investment holding company that manages a portfolio valued at about 20 billion ringgit, the bulk of it in the form of unit trusts owned by more than three million Malaysians.

Datuk Khalid will be replaced at PNB by Mohamed Hilmey Mohamed Taib, a 41-year-old former banker and accountant who is currently PNB’s deputy chief executive.

Datuk Khalid, a 47-year-old former university lecturer and merchant banker, joined PNB in 1978 and helped direct the then-fledgling investment company’s growth into a mammoth stock-holding concern for Malaysia’s “bumiputra,” or indigenous, citizens. He also helped create a unit trust scheme whereby bumiputras, mainly ethnic Malays, can purchase shares in PNB’s underlying stock portfolio and reap hefty dividends. PNB’s after-tax profit rose 17.5% in 1993 to 736.9 million ringgit.

PNB made an international splash in 1981, when it wrested control of Guthrie from the company’s British shareholders through a one-billion-ringgit “dawn raid” on the London Stock Exchange. PNB’s other long-term investments include stakes in Malaysian Mining Corp. Bhd. and UMW Holdings Bhd.

Although Datuk Khalid‘s shift to Guthrie was expected, some Malaysian securities analysts were surprised at the heavily discounted 2.50 ringgit price for Guthrie shares that PNB offered its departing chief. When PNB floated 10% of Guthrie on the Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange in 1989, the company pledged to offer an additional 20% of Guthrie‘s equity to the public. The prospective sale to Datuk Khalid fulfills that promise, but it means PNB is passing up the chance to seek a higher price for Guthrie stock from other bidders or the public.

“It really looks like PNB is paying (Datuk Khalid) off,” says one securities research manager, who believes Guthrie stock would sell readily. “They’re forgoing a higher price on the market by offering such a discount.”

Datuk Khalid says he regards the arrangement “not as a monetary reward, but as an opportunity because the risk is being taken by me.” He adds that he is financing the acquisition largely through bank borrowings secured by the Guthrie shares. “I’ve not taken this much liability in my career,” he says. “None of my family assets could cover this liability.”

The PNB chief adds that the arrangement has the support of PNB chairman Ismail Mohamed Ali, Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad and Deputy Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim. Dr. Mahathir and Datuk Anwar head Yayasan Pelaburan Bumiputra, a government-backed foundation that is PNB’s ultimate holding company.

Datuk Khalid says he decided to leave his PNB post for the challenge of owning and running a large company. “A portfolio manager is very different from an operational manager,” he says, though he declines to outline his plans for Guthrie. The company’s earnings have grown only slowly in recent years and Guthrie has begun seeking ways to expand into fields such as property development.

Mr. Hilmey, who replaces Datuk Khalid at PNB, has spent 13 years with the investment company, serving as assistant general manager of one of PNB’s unit trusts and general manager for finance before becoming deputy chief executive in 1990.

New Straits Times, 25 April 1996

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Khalid ordered to pay RM66.67 million to Bank Islam

(Bernama, 21 August 2009) - Selangor Menteri Besar Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim was ordered by the High Court here Friday to pay RM66.67 million to Bank Islam Malaysia for a loan he took to purchase Guthrie shares in 2001 when he was the company's chief executive officer.

Justice Datuk Rohana Yusuf, who made the order in chambers, however, granted Khalid's application for an interim stay of execution pending a formal application on Sept 16.

Khalid's counsel, Malik Imtiaz Sarwar, told reporters that Rohana allowed Bank Islam's application for a summary judgment on grounds that the case need not enter into a full trial as there were no triable issues.

A summary judgment is a final decision by a judge which resolves a lawsuit in favour of one of the parties.

A motion for summary judgment is made after discovery is completed but before the case goes to full trial.

Malik Imtiaz said an appeal would be lodged with the Court of Appeal against Friday's outcome as he felt the matter should go before a full trial.

He said he would file a proper stay application by next week.

The court fixed Sept 16 to hear the formal stay application and to mention Khalid's suit against Bank Islam.

The bank counter-sued Khalid on May 24, 2007, claiming that Khalid had breached its contract in the Al Bai-Bithaman Ajil (BBA) loan agreement in the purchase of Guthrie shares.

Khalid initiated a suit against the bank on May 18, 2007, seeking damages and a declaration that there existed a collateral contract between him and bank with the said loan agreement dated April 30, 2001.

He also wanted a declaration that the BBA facility, in isolation and without the collateral contract, is null and void and that Bank Islam had breached the collateral contract and the BBA facility.

Khalid was not present in court while Bank Islam was represented by senior counsel Tommy Thomas.

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Is Khalid Ibrahim in another favour-for-cash with Lim Kim Hong?

(Another Brick in the Wall, 6 November 2009) - When Khalid was asked by reporters on his link with Lim Kim Hong written in this blog on June 9th, 2008, the above was his response.

This blog has been in pursuit of the Selangor Menteri Besar, Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim's past corruption trail since early 2007. The claim is that Khalid had a history of favour-for-cash arrangement with Lim Kim Hong.

With Khalid currently under financial difficulty to repay the balance loan of RM66 million with Bank Islam, there is suspicion that he had done another favour-for-cash arrangement.

This blog made its first revelation of the link between Khalid Ibrahim and Lim Kim Hong during the Ijok by-election. A set of questions for candidate Khalid Ibrahim was posted on April 26th, 2007. The questions were partly answered by the first expose made by Dato Desa Pachi at the campaign trail in the presence of Najib.

In June 2008, another series of posting was made on the opening of Lim Kin Hong I Berhad's I-City.

The first probe was on June 9th with a piece entitled Hubungan Rahsia Khalid Ibrahim dan Lim Kin Hong. That posting received much publicity with Rocky Bru's link to the posting here. Sinar Harian published in their Dari Blog ke Blog section.

Reporters asked Khalid about the posting and he denied. It was reported by The Star, The Edge and Bernama. Comments to news report was posted on June 12th that day itself in Khalid Ibrahim Menjawab Blog ini.

READ MORE HERE: http://anotherbrickinwall.blogspot.com/2009/11/is-khalid-ibrahim-in-another-favour-for.html

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Khalid wins appeal against Bank Islam case

(Bernama, 3 March 2010) - Selangor Menteri Besar Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim need not pay RM66.67 million to Bank Islam Malaysia (BIMB) as the Court of Appeal here today set aside the summary judgment obtained by the bank against him for failure to settle an Islamic loan facility that he took to buy shares.

Justices Datuk Zainun Ali, Datuk Jeffrey Tan Kok Wha and Datuk Syed Ahmad Helmy Syed Ahmad unanimously allowed Abdul Khalid's appeal with costs.

The case is sent back to the High Court as the quorum ruled that the issues in the case must be ventilated at full trial.

In setting aside the summary judgment, Zainun said the court was of the view that under Islamic banking principles, opinion from Islamic jurists on the precepts of Islam on the legality of the transaction, was required.

There are two suits filed relating to the matter, one by Abdul Khalid against the bank and the second is the bank's counter-suit against Abdul Khalid.

On Aug 21 last year, the Kuala Lumpur High Court, granted the bank's application to enter summary judgment against Abdul Khalid and ordered him to pay RM66.67 million.

READ MORE HERE: http://archive.freemalaysiatoday.com/fmt-english/news/general/2812-khalid-wins-appeal-against-bank-islam-case

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I-Berhad plans mixed REIT

(NST, 11 March 2011) -- I-BERHAD, an integrated ICT developer, aims to launch a mixed real estate investment trust (REIT) worth more than RM1 billion in four to five years.

The idea is to unlock the value of investments at i-City, the company's 29ha knowledge and tourism hub in Shah Alam, Selangor.

I-Berhad chief executive officer Datuk Eu Hong Chew said the REIT will comprise data centres, an office tower, hotel, mall and carpark block.

"We are growing our property portfolio. When we have developed 30 to 40 per cent of i-City, we will launch the REIT," Lee told Business Times recently.

I-City, the first private initiative to be awarded the Malaysian Super Corridor Cybercentre status, is currently 20 per cent developed. The project started in 2005.

The company has so far built cybercentre office suites, data-centres and innovation centre with a combined 500,000 sq ft of space.

Al Rajhi Banking Group owns 200,000 sq ft of the space and the rest have been leased to multi national firms and small- and medium-sized enterprises.

Lee said I-Berhad will double the existing 1,000-bay carpark block within the next two years to enhance its value.

It has RM50 million in cash to fund the construction of new properties for the next three years.

Lee added that the company will not borrow from banks at this point. It plans to plough back future profits for its investments in i-City.

The company, helm by its executive chairman Tan Sri Lim Kim Hong, aims to be profitable in fiscal 2011 with expected growth in all its three divisions - property development, property investment and tourism.

For the nine months ended September 30 2010, I-Berhad posted a net loss of RM1.73 million on revenues of RM6.4 million.

State-owned investment fund Permodalan Nasional Bhd holds 20 per cent of I-Berhad.

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Selangor to clean up Klang River

(The Star, 20 March 2010) -- The Klang River rehabilitation project, an initiative under Selangor’s economic stimulus package, offers many opportunities including new commercial, tourism and property development ventures.

According to project masterplanner DPZ Asia Sdn Bhd principal Kamal Zaharin, there are various components in the project – river cleaning, new source of drinking water, environmental protection, flood mitigation, commercial, tourism and land development activities.

The state government has gazetted the riverbank and no development can take place without its permission.

“The draft master plan for the project is scheduled to be ready before the end of the month,” Kamal said.

One of the companies appointed to undertake the project is Wessex Water I-Bhd Consortium, a 50:50 joint venture between Wessex Water, a UK-based water and sewerage treatment company owned by YTL Corp Bhd, and I-Bhd.

Wessex Water managing director Gareth Jones said the state government’s plan to rehabilitate and clean up the Klang River was very visionary because “in any country, a river is the people’s lifeline.”

“The status of the Klang River now lies between critical and bad. There is a lot of trash that needs to be weeded out but the river can be saved and improved,” he said, adding that the company would start work next year.

Jones said various parts of the country were now suffering from water shortage and the cleaned water would come in handy.

“We are looking at tapping the water at the lower end of the middle stretch of the Klang River between Puchong and Shah Alam that is not affected by sea water. The physio-chemical treatment process will leave no chemical residue and the process of improving the water quality so it can be drunk is very economical and commercially viable,” he told StarBiz.

On its development potential, I-Bhd CEO Eu Hong Chew said: “We expect more new developments and redevelopment projects along the river bank going forward.”

Eu said the project would enhance the asset value of the riverfront land and open a new growth corridor for Selangor.

“The property fraternity should be excited about the prospects ahead as the river rehabilitation project will open new development options within established municipalities in Selangor,” he added.

For a start, I-Bhd’s i-City project which has some riverfront development (along Rasau River that flows into Klang River) can look forward to some value enhancement when the river water is cleaned.

The 72-acre project, with a gross development value of RM2bil, is already 20% completed. It will take a further five to eight years to complete.

Last Saturday, Selangor Mentri Besar Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim announced that four companies – Wessex Water I-Bhd Consortium, TSS-Mako Engineering Sdn Bhd, GJA Engineering and Construction and DPZ Asia Sdn Bhd – had been appointed to carry out the river rehabilitation project.

Apart from DPZ Asia, which was appointed by Khalid, the three were appointed from among 37 companies that had submitted their proposals last October after the project was advertised by the state government.

TSS-Mako combines local talents with three of South Korea’s biggest engineering firms while GJA Engineering is a 100% bumiputra-owned company.

Khalid said the entire project would take 15 years and was expected to attract some RM50bil worth of investments to clean, rehabilitate and develop the river.

Phase one comprising the building of a RM1bil water treatment plant and development along the riverbank, also estimated at RM1bil, will take two to three years.

The 120km river stretches from Klang to Shah Alam, Subang Jaya, Petaling Jaya, Kuala Lumpur and Ampang Jaya.

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DPZ only involved in planning of Klang River project

(Bernama, 14 April 2010) -- Selangor Menteri Besar Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim today clarified that DPZ Asia Sdn Bhd was not directly involved in rehabilitation and cleaning up of the Klang River project.

"DPZ do not carry out the project but rather involved in providing advise and planning," he said when answering a question by Amirudin Shari (PKR-Batu Caves) who wanted to know the status of the company's appointment in the project.

Abdul Khalid said DPZ was picked because it was managed by a local who had the expertise in rural and city town planning and had worked as a town planner in Florida, United States.

He said the Malaysian, through his company had successfully carried out a number of project planning works in United States, China, New Zealand and Australia.

Abdul Khalid said it was also part of his efforts to bring back the expertise of an international consultant to the country for a small cost and contribute for the development of the country.

Yesterday, acting opposition leader Datuk Mohamad Satim Diman (BN-Seri Serdang) had wanted the Menteri Besar to clarify the appointment of DPZ Asia, which was done without an open tender.

As for the appointment of three other companies through a tender exercise, Abdul Khalid said GJA Engineering & Construction Sdn Bhd was a professional Bumiputera company involved in the development along rivers.

The second company, TSS Mako Engineering Sdn Bhd is a consortium made up of local companies and a number of companies from south Korea that have vast knowledge in rehabilitation and cleaning of rivers in South Korea.

He added that Wessex Water I Bhd Consortium was a joint venture between Wessex Water company which has expertise in environment like managing the Thames in London and I-Bhd, a developer of high technology cities like the I-City.

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I-Bhd’s decision to leverage on digital technology has borne fruit in the form of i-City

(The Star, 7 January 2012) -- When I-Bhd first ventured into property development about six years ago, the company decided to leverage on its digital technology prowess to undertake the construction of the first digital city in the country, i-City in Section 7, Shah Alam.

That decision has proved to be a worthwhile proposition.

The state-of-the-art information and communications technology (ICT) urban centre is located on a freehold plot along the Federal Highway Route II fronting the Sungai Rasau toll plaza.

According to I-Bhd executive chairman Tan Sri Lim Kim Hong, the strategy has helped the group to establish itself as a unique property developer with a unique development that I-Berhad can be proud of.

“i-City is today one of the leading technology cities in the country – from being the first to provide fibre to the unit to having the whole 72-acres of development as a Cisco network.

“Being a MSC Cybercity with complete information communication technology (ICT) infrastructure, the development is provided with dual source power supply, multi-telco environment and super broadband accessibility of 200mbps,” Lim relates to StarBizWeek in an interview.

Chief executive officer Datuk Eu Hong Chew says i-City is the first gated and guarded mixed development that has been accorded the status as an International Park in Shah Alam.

The 10-year development will feature some 12 million sq ft of gross lettable area (GLA) for a total gross development value (GDV) of RM4.5bil.

Of this, about 35% will comprise residences, and the balance will be offices, commercial and retail space, hotel and service apartments, a convention complex, an intelligent school and a technology hub.

Since construction took off in 2007, some 500,000 sq ft or 366 offices suites as well as a 70,000 sq ft Tier 4 data centre have been completed.

Eu says Al-Rajhi Bank (Malaysia) had in 2009 invested RM95mil to purchase 250,000 sq ft of the office suites for investment purposes, adding that another institutional investor is expected to buy up the balance 50% of the office suites in the next three months.

He adds that i-City is promoting a cosmopolitan lifestyle living in line with the Selangor state government’s initiative last July of according i-City an international community.

“With this status, the plot ratio for the development has been raised to five times from three times previously which raises its GLA to 12 million sq ft from 7.5 million sq ft.

“We are taking advantage of this higher plot ratio to increase the residential component to 35% of the GLA from 5% previously. This means some 3 million sq ft will be the residential component,” Eu says.

The first residential project in i-City will be i-Residence comprising a 33-storey block of 346 service residences and an adjacent double-storey block of 20 duplex suites.

I-Bhd director Monica Ong says the service residences with built-up from 715 sq ft to 1358 sq ft are priced in the region of RM450 per sq ft, while the duplex suites of up to 3,500 sq ft will be at around RM550 per sq ft. They will be fitted with air conditioners, water heating system and kitchen appliances.

“The i-Residence design is also in line with our master planner Jon Jerde’s concept of having luscious we well as pedestrian friendly environment,” adds Ong.

Lim Boon Siong posing with a model of the RM2bil I-City ICT-based commercial development in Shah Alam

Intelligent city

Being part of the MSC Cybercity, the residences get to enjoy dual source power supply, a multi-telco environment and super broadband accessibility of 200mbps.

According to Eu, since its inception, i-City has what it takes to become a success story.

“Its location within the vibrant city of Shah Alam has opened up the opportunity for I-Berhad to get the full support of the state government, which has formed the i-City Selangor Steering Committee to facilitate its development,” he explains.

Being the maiden private sector-led ICT urban centre development in the country, the project has been designated as Selangor’s International City by the state government.

The state government will build a flyover from the Sungai Rasau toll plaza along Federal Highway cutting into Section 7 Shah Alam to i-City which is slated to be ready in 2013.

“This interchange plans include providing an exclusive access to i-Residence as well as from both KL and Klang,” explains Ong.

Under the light rail transit (LRT) blueprint, the extension of the LRT system from Kelana Jaya to Klang will also serve i-City.

Leveraging on these advantages, Eu says it will not be far fetched for i-City to realise its goal as a vibrant ICT urban centre where “work, play and entertainment come together.”

“i-City’s business plan involves not only developing properties for sale as well as for long term investments, but also to build up its leisure business based on i-City’s vision of being both a knowledge hub as well as a tourism destination.

“We started i-City with the MSC Malaysia Cybercentre development.

“Then in December 2009, we opened ‘The City of Digital Lights’ as it’s first leisure component. This year, we are launching our first residential component,” adds Eu.

Midas touch

The other decision to engage renowned American architect Jon A. Jerde of the Jerde Partnership as the master planner for i-City has also given the project its “winning streak.” Jerde has brought his Midas touch of “place-making” to turn i-City into the city of digital lights and a tourism destination that has become quite a hit among Klang Valley folks.

“We believe the relationship with The Jerde Partnership has resulted in the planning for the right products in line with the famous Jerde hallmark of place-making to make a positive impact here.

“Over the years, Jerde has built a strong network of retailers, mall operators and investors. Its name alone has become a premium brand that sells,” Lim says.

He says projects that bear the Jerde hallmark in the US include Universal Citywalk in Los Angeles, which has redefined the urban village as an intricate weave of uses and services, and the internationally acclaimed Fremont Street Experience in Las Vegas, Nevada, that is now a dynamic destination for a new form of urban theatre.

Jerde is also behind the iconic 4.2 million square feet Mall of America in Minnesota, the largest mall in the US, and one of the most vibrant shopping complexes in the world with 520 shops, theme parks and a university.

In Asia, Jerde’s architectural landmarks include Canal City Hakata in Fukuoka Prefecture in Kyushu, Japan, and the famous Roppongi Hills in Tokyo. In Hong Kong, his signature can been seen in the Arcade @ Cyberport, an ICT-based residential, office and retail development.

“The first leisure element in i-City, dubbed the City of Digital Lights with its 1 million LED lights is Jerde-inspired from the Fremont Street Experience. We just adapted the lightscape concept to be in-line with our digital technology approach and hence the LED lights,” comments Lim.

Growth catalyst

Eu says for the next phase of the company’s growth, I-Bhd will be leveraging on Lim’s business and entrepreneurial expertise to further add value to the development.

The first step in this direction is the establishment of a strategic alliance between Everbright International of China and I-Bhd in December last year to co-develop 30 acres of land in i-City.

He says the 30 acres represent all the undeveloped land in i-City and will ensure that the whole development can be completed by 2020.

“The strategic alliance with Everbright International is made possible by Lim’s “guanxi” or special relationship that he has established with the various parties in China since venturing into China in 1984,” Eu says.

He points out that the joint venture with Everbright International is an important milestone for I-Bhd as it will enable the company to continue with its strategy of “selling upon completion as well as to hold part of the property as long-term investments.”

Furthermore, it will also enable I-Berhad to tap into China’s demand for investment of properties in Malaysia.

With Everbright International holding 70% share, the Chinese counterpart will drive the joint venture and thus free I-Berhad to pursue other development activities.

“For the next phase of i-City’s development, I-Berhad will be tapping into its branding expertise to brand it’s upcoming residential projects,” Eu adds.

I-Berhad has a few niche residential property projects in the Klang Valley for launch these one to two years.

The first residential project, i-Residence in i-City, is schedule for launch in March.

The 33-storey i-Residence will be the third building block in i-City after the MSC Malaysia Cybercentre and the tourism component.

The second will be a luxurious condominium project in Changkat Kia Peng, Kuala Lumpur.

The slightly more than an acre land in the city’s Golden Triangle is set to mark I-Berhad’s move into the high-end residential market.

The parcel was acquired by Lim about 20 years ago and is today a valuable prime land located within 5 minutes walking distance to KLCC. Also on the card is i-City South, a 7-acre development to the south of the current i-City site.