Wheelock eyes HNA’s last Kai Tak plot even as it posts a 1.5pc rise in 2017 core profit
Buoyed by the demand for its Malibu project in Lohas Park, Wheelock raises prices of new batch of flats by 8.8pc
Wheelock and Co, which pulled in HK$6.4 billion (US$816 million) in property sales over the weekend, said on the Monday that it is interested in HNA Group’s last residential site in Kai Tak should the debt-laden Chinese conglomerate put it up for sale.
The company bought a similar site in Kai Tak for HK$6.36 billion from HNA last week.
“If HNA considers [selling] the fourth piece of land to certain buyers, I am sure that we will go through with it,” said Douglas Woo, chairman and managing director of Wheelock.
“Wheelock has launched Oasis Kai Tak before,” referring to the company’s project at the site of Hong Kong’s former airport. “So I guess [the possibility of buying HNA’s plot] is reasonable. But, of course, it depends on the resources,” he said.
His statement comes after the group’s launch of its mass residential project, Malibu, in Lohas Park near Tseung Kwan O, received overwhelming response. Its property unit, Wheelock Properties, generated HK$6.4 billion from the sale of 750 flats in just two days.
To capitalise on the buying frenzy, Wheelock on Monday released another batch of 160 units, but increased the prices by 8.8 per cent compared to those sold on the weekend.