Chinese developer forced to sell Ma On Shan site amid Beijing’s tightened capital controls

China City Construction will sell its Ma On Shan waterfront residential site to Wang On Properties. It acquired the plot in 2014 for HK$2.138 billion.

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Mainland developer China City Construction has put its Ma On Shan waterfront site on the block for a while before finding a buyer in Wang On Properties, according to industry watchers. Photo: Stanley Shin

Published: 7:00pm, 22 Jun 2017Updated: 11:09pm, 22 Jun 2017

China City Construction (International) is forced to sell the waterfront residential site in Ma On Shan that it won in a 2014 government tender after encountering financial difficulties to proceed with construction amid Beijing’s tightened controls on capital outflows.

The sale, considered a rare case in reselling of government land, was confirmed by Wang On Properties on Thursday in a statement saying that it had agreed to take over the site.

When asked if the firm needed to pay a premium for the government plot, Wang On Properties chief executive Gary Wong said: “Home prices have been breaking one record after another, and land [prices] as well. It is hard to get the deal done by offering the same price [in 2014].”

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In December 2014, the Lands Department awarded the residential site at Yiu Sha Road, Whitehead, to Loyal Pioneer for HK$2.138 billion. The company is 90 per cent-owned by state-backed China City Construction (International) and 10 per cent held by construction firm Chun Wo Development, now renamed as Asia Allied Infrastructure Holdings.

Wang On Properties has not disclosed the price it paid for the site but the company’s chief executive alluded to an increase from the HK$2.138 billion winning bid in 2014. Photo: SCMP handout

The pair had beaten 20 competitors to secure the site, which could yield a total gross floor area of 387,500 square feet, for HK$5,517 per square ft, a per-square-foot record price then for a residential site in Ma On Shan.

Chinese developer forced to sell Ma On Shan site amid Beijing’s tightened capital controls

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}China City Construction will sell its Ma On Shan waterfront residential site to Wang On Properties. It acquired the plot in 2014 for HK$2.138 billion.

China City Construction will sell its Ma On Shan waterfront residential site to Wang On Properties. It acquired the plot in 2014 for HK$2.138 billion.