SSANGYONG Engineering & Construction has won a 35 billion
won (S$40.5 million) deal to build a premium shopping centre in
Singapore, the latest boost to its growing presence in one of
Asia's hottest construction markets.
Korea's 15th-largest builder signed the contract with City
Development Ltd, the largest property developer of Singapore, on
Thursday. Ssangyong will design and construct a two-storey luxury
mall with a basement by April 2012 beside W Singapore Sentosa Cove
Hotel, which is also being built by Ssangyong.
City Development, affiliated with Singapore's top conglomerate
Hong Leong Group, operates some 110 hotels in 18 countries,
including Millennium Seoul Hilton in Korea.
'We won the contract not by offering lower prices but because of
relations between two company owners and the advantage of using
materials and workforce already put into the hotel work was also
taken into account,' Ssangyong said. 'The deal attests to our
competitiveness in high-class construction in the world
market.'
The Seoul-based contractor estimates construction costs for the
mall will be several times higher than those for domestic
multistorey apartments on account of the top-quality interior
design and construction materials.
It will also employ environmentally-friendly technologies such
as wind power generators, solar panels and Low-E Glass, whose lower
heat conductivity minimizes temperature increases inside a
building, the company said.
-- KOREA HERALD/ANN