Rail operator Malayan Railways Ltd, locally known as Keretapi Tanah Melayu Bhd (KTMB), plans to embark on its first property project in Klang Valley valued at RM6 billion over the next two to three years
“Our landbank could generate projects worth RM6 billion,” said its CEO Mohd Rani Hisham Samsudin during the opening ceremony of the 39th ASEAN Railways CEO’s Conference in Putrajaya.
“We are looking at various pockets of opportunities for the lands neighbouring our stations, to unlock this value and subsequently improve contribution to our revenue from the non-fare segments.”
He revealed that they intend to team up with other companies to construct this transit-oriented development. But this plan will still take some time before it is finalised, as it requires getting all necessary permits from the relevant authorities.
“However, we could kick off the property projects as early as next year,” said KTMB’s independent Non-Executive Director Datuk Ahmad Zainuddin Jamaluddin.
In addition, Rani explained that they need to carefully plan their developments, given that each railway station has different attributes and clientele.
“We can’t simply develop any projects as we like, as we need to be mindful of the markets that each location can capture. Some stations are located on routes that pass through residential and township areas.”
“While some stations are closer to the industrial zones. Different stations do serve different markets and that is where we have to be careful in the grand design of the development”
Next month, KTMB will start a double-tracking project to increase the range of its railway network from Negeri Sembilan’s Gemas to Johor Bahru, with the construction expected to take four years to finish.
“Once this is completed, then all of KTMB’s railway network stretching from north to south, will boast double track,” he added.
Image sourced from FMT.
This article was edited by the editorial team of PropertyGuru. To contact them about this or other stories email editorialteam@propertyguru.com.my
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