Monday, October 15, 2007

URA To Promote Singapore To Middle East Investors At Premier International Property Event

Source : Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) Press Release, 15 October 2007

A Singapore Pavilion comprising public and private organizations will be at ‘Cityscape Dubai’ between 16 to 18 October 2007 to jointly promote Singapore as a great city to live, work, play and invest in. This is the first time a Singapore Pavilion has been set up in a premier international property event in Middle East, to actively attract and promote Singapore to Middle East investors.

Mr Choy Chan Pong, Director of Land Administration, Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA), will be speaking at the conference in Cityscape Dubai on the ‘Growth of the Real Estate in Singapore’. He will speak on Singapore’s success in attracting global investments into our real estate market and keep investors abreast of the exciting investment opportunities that Singapore has to offer.

Singapore-Middle East connections

More than 250 Middle East companies currently have operations based in Singapore. There is also an increasing Middle East presence in Singapore’s real estate market, from individuals buying private homes to equity funds investing in mega development projects.

A recent foray by a Middle East entity into Singapore’s real estate is the Dubai-based Istithmar Group. The Istithmar Group is owned by the Dubai World consortium, whose investments include The Palm, Dubai. Partnering local developer City Developments Ltd and the North American based El-Ad Group, the consortium recently successfully tendered SGD$1.689 billion (US$1.126 billion) for a prominent 3.5ha commercial site at Beach Road. The estimated SGD$2.7 billion (US$1.8 billion) project called South Beach will feature a high-quality mix of prime office space, two luxury hotels, retail and residences.

Singapore’s Pavilion at Cityscape Dubai

The public and private sector organizations, exhibiting in the Singapore Pavilion in Cityscape Dubai include the URA, Singapore Tourism Board (STB), Building and Construction Authority (BCA), Marina Bay Financial Centre, Lend Lease Retail, Ong & Ong and the Singapore Institute of Architects (SIA).

“Participating in such international property events has reaped tremendous benefits for Singapore as a whole. A clear example can be seen in the South Beach project. URA had met with Istithmar in last year’s Cityscape Dubai and presented them with the exciting investment opportunities we have in Singapore including the prominent Beach Road site. Singapore’s participation in Cityscape Dubai hence allows us to meet with potential investors and developers face-to-face, enables them to better understand what Singapore has to offer”, said Mr Choy Chan Pong.

The URA will showcase Marina Bay – Singapore’s future downtown – and envisioned as the centrepiece of Singapore’s urban transformation. Extending seamlessly from the existing central business district, Marina Bay is planned to be more than just a business and financial centre, offering a wide range of quality residential, shopping, dining, and entertainment facilities, with a necklace of public attractions framing the bay within a lush green environment. To date, Marina Bay has attracted around SGD$15 billion (US$10 billion) worth of investments from international developers including the Marina Bay Sands Integrated Resort, prime commercial developments such as One Raffles Quay, Marina Bay Financial Centre and South Beach as well as high-quality residential developments.

STB will be showcasing some of the exciting changes and transformation to the tourism landscape. In particular, STB will highlight exciting tourism zones including Orchard Road and the Southern Waterfront, while SIA will showcase some of the architectural works of their member firms. BCA will exhibit its mission in building a quality built environment in Singapore. BCA International, a consultancy company by BCA will also be present to provide multi-disciplinary construction related consultancy to both public and private agencies in the Middle East.

The Singapore Pavilion is also joined by private developers, showcasing some of the prime developments including the Marina Bay Financial Centre ad Somerset Central at Orchard Road. Please refer to Annex 1 (http://www.ura.gov.sg/pr/graphics/2007/pr07-111a.pdf) for the list of participating public-private organisations and the projects to be exhibited.

About Cityscape Dubai

Cityscape is one of the largest international real estate conferences and exhibitions, with global presence anchored in USA, Asia, China, India, Dubai, Abu Dhabi and South America. Cityscape Dubai, now in its 6th year, is a 3-day long event that attracts more than 45,000 real estate players, including international investors, property developers, investment firms, government and development authorities, leading architects, and financial institutions.

The inaugural Cityscape Asia was hosted in Singapore in April 2007, and attracted participants from 53 countries, including Singapore, Japan, United Arab Emirates and the surrounding Asia-Pacific region.

For more information on Cityscape Dubai, please log onto its official website at www.cityscape.ae.

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For media enquiries:

Ms Aida Tay
Public Relations Manager
Urban Redevelopment Authority
Email: aida_tay@ura.gov.sg
DID: 6321 8137

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