Resort operator Karambunai Corp is looking for investors from Asia-Pacific, including the Middle East, says its chief executive officer

DEVELOPER and resort operator Karambunai Corp Bhd (KCB) (3115), which is planning a return to profit, is looking for partners to help develop its land in Sabah and Kuala Lumpur, its chief executive said.

Currently, the firm is finalising plans with its South Korean partner, Landlovers Korea Co Ltd, to build a Korean Village Resort at the Karambunai peninsula in Kota Kinabalu.

Landlovers will hold 70 per cent of the venture to build villas and condominiums worth over RM400 million. It will market them exclusively in South Korea.

"These kind of partnerships will allow us to improve our revenue and profit base. We will be looking for similar deals with other investors from Asia-Pacific, including the Middle East," chief executive officer Datuk Robin Loh Hoon Loi told Business Times in an interview.
The firm has a 600ha land in the Karambunai peninsula and another 520ha in Bukit Unggul, KL.

KCB has since 1997 used 100ha at the Karambunai peninsula to build the five-star Nexus Resort Karambunai and Nexus Golf Resort Karambunai.

In the last few years, it has launched the RM2 billion Nexus Residences Karambunai (NRK) project, with the completion of the Dillenia precinct recently.

Although KCB made a record net profit last year, it fell into the red in the year to March 31 2008 with a net loss of RM32.1 million due to higher operating cost.

However, it is trying to turn the corner again. It made a net profit of RM3.3 million on revenue of RM117 million for the first six months of the current fiscal year.

"We are getting stable revenue and profit from our current resort and golf operations. Soon we will be getting profits from Dillenia, which will be operated as a new hotel under the Nexus brand.

"It is due to operate next January," Loh said.

Dillenia comprises 80 semi-detached beachfront villas and 163 condominium units, which were sold to investors under a leaseback option to KCB.

"It was a good deal as not only were we able to achieve promising sales from Dillenia, we are now able to generate additional income per annum from leasing the properties," Loh said.

At Bukit Unggul, which is near Putrajaya, Cyberjaya and the Kuala Lumpur International Airport, KCB plans to develop commercial, residential and recreational components.

It currently houses an 18-hole golf course and a club house.

KCB has three projects slated to launch next year - worth a combined RM1 billion - at the Karam-bunai peninsula and at its Bandar Sierra township, near the Kota Kinabalu city centre.

This includes Amabilis, a RM400 million development in NRK, featuring 100 luxury villas, by the first quarter of next year.

Amabilis will cater largely to foreigners under the Malaysia My Second Home (MM2H) program-me. Also earmarked to launch next year is the Korean resort. Details of the project are being finalised currently.

In Bandar Sierra, KCB will launch 200 units of terrace and semi-detached houses and cluster homes; 416 units of walk-up apartments; and 80 units of three-and four-storey shoplots worth RM180 million, by mid-2009.

Loh expects brisk sales for its new launches due to demand from buyers from Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan, Japan, South Korea and Europe under MM2H.

"We are aware of the macro-economic conditions that we are operating in and have put that into consideration when preparing our strategies and business plans," Loh said.

Source: mypropertynews.blogspot.com

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