Thursday, October 21, 2010

SP Setia hub sets green benchmark

SP Setia Bhd's Setia City integrated commercial hub in Shah Alam, Selangor, will have 40 office towers with green certification over the next 10 to 15 years, its chief said.



Setia City is by far the only commercial hub that will have more than 40 buildings. It will include residential blocks, four-star hotel, retail mall, convention centre, hospital and university.

Setia City, estimated to be worth RM5 billion, will set a new benchmark where green development is concerned, SP Setia president and chief executive officer Tan Sri Liew Kee Sin said.

According to Liew, Setia City will be the first integrated project in the country to have all its buildings certified under the Green Building Index.

"While green buildings may not be a new phenomenon in the country, they are usually standalone structures," he said at the launch of Setia City by Housing and Local Government Minister Datuk Chor Chee Heung yesterday.
Setia City, sprawled over 96ha in Setia Alam, is expected to attract local and multinational companies, Liew said.

SP Setia is also selling land at Setia City and companies which buy the land can build their own towers to their specifications.

To date, Top Glove Corp Bhd and Khind Holdings Bhd have bought land to set up Grade A office towers as their new corporate headquarters.

Top Glove will build an 18-storey tower, while Khind is mulling over its plans.

SP Setia will also set up its corporate headquarters in a nine-storey building.

Ongoing works at Setia City include the 1.23 million sq ft Setia City Mall by Land Lease Australia.

On the hotel, university and hospital, Liew said the company will talk to local operators to run the facilities.

Meanwhile, Chor said his ministry and Bank Negara Malaysia were monitoring property price movements to prevent a housing bubble.

"We are still far from a property bubble. But we are monitoring and will take action against speculators," he said.

By Business Times