BY NADYA NGUI

“We will keep the mall for recurring income. Now, we have 17 tenants and there will be more to come,” managing director Datuk Seri Lim Keng Cheng said after EkoCheras Mall key tenants signing ceremony. The company aims to attract 250 tenants for the project

KUALA LUMPUR: Ekovest Bhd, which is considering to launch a real estate investment trust (REIT), expects the EkoCheras shopping mall to generate strong recurring income for the group once the project is completed in two years.

The mall is part of a mixed development which will consist of about one million sq ft in retail space, serviced apartments as well as office and hotel suites.

“We will keep the mall for recurring income. Now, we have 17 tenants and there will be more to come,” managing director Datuk Seri Lim Keng Cheng said after EkoCheras Mall key tenants signing ceremony. The company aims to attract 250 tenants for the project.

Lim said the mall’s location would make the project an attractive property for retail yield and capital appreciation.

The residential and retail components of EkoCheras Mall are scheduled to be completed by the first quarter of 2018.

Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Seri Wee Ka Siong, who witnessed the signing, said the project would provide new homes to some 1,500 residents as well as offices for businesses.

“With last Wednesday’s reduction of the overnight policy rate to 3%, we hope this will spur the local economy by making it easier for property buyers to acquire assets and pay for it.

“The property market is coming out of its slump because the capital appreciation for this sector for buyers is still most attractive in the long run,” he said.

Apart from EkoCheras Mall, the other components of the development are the iconic twin SoHo apartment towers with link bridge deck, a serviced apartment tower as well as hotel and office suites with a basement and podium car parking to accommodate 4,500 cars.

In an earlier report, Lim had said the company expected its property development segment to contribute significant revenues in the next five years.

Ekovest had begun to have new sources of revenue since 2013 when it launched its first property development project, EkoCheras.

Its long-term target is to achieve a revenue mix of 40% from construction, and 30% each from property development and toll concessions.

Right now, property development contributes around 13% of total revenue, construction makes up the bulk at more than 60%, while the toll concession division is about 21%.