Talam Transform seeks partners to develop land bank

KUALA LUMPUR: Property developer Talam Transform Bhd, which saw its joint-venture (JV) agreements with IJM Land Bhd being called off about two months ago, is now seeking new JV partners to jointly develop its land bank in Selangor.

“We still have undeveloped land in Selangor of about 2,000 acres (809.37ha). The group is now in talks with two to three local property firms. I believe we should have some [materialising] this year,” said executive director Chua Kim Lan.

Currently, Talam Transform has three ongoing JV projects, namely Serenia Garden, Taman Puncak Jalil and Saujana Putra, with an estimated gross development value (GDV) of RM400 million to RM500 million, she told reporters after the company annual general meeting (AGM) yesterday.

To recap, IJM Land unit IJM Properties Sdn Bhd in May this year terminated two 50:50 JV agreements with Talam Transform that were inked in 2006 and 2007, saying “the deals could not realise their commercial objectives”.

The two JV agreements were signed for the development of land in Ulu Kelang measuring 17.84 acres as well as a 204-acre tract in Gombak.

Meanwhile, Talam Transform has submitted four new development plans for approval to the Selangor authorities. The plans are for property projects worth RM2 billion to RM3 billion that are scheduled for launch next year.

According to Chua, the group will develop a total of 400ha of land without having to seek JV partners.

A total of 120ha from this land, situated in Putra Perdana, Ulu Kelang and Selayang, have been earmarked for residential properties, while the remaining 280ha in Bukit Beruntung will be developed into an industrial park, she said.

Formerly known as Trinity Corp Bhd, Talam Transform currently has assets held for sale amounting to about RM300 million — the sale and purchase agreements for the disposals have been signed but the deals are pending completion upon fulfilment of conditions.

The assets to be disposed of include Pandan Safari Shopping Complex, its 85% stake in China’s Maxcourt Hotel Ltd, and a few parcels of land in Batang Berjuntai and Bukit Beruntung.

Yaw Chun Soon, former executive director of TA Enterprise Bhd, was also present at Talam Transform’s AGM as an “observer” yesterday.

Sources told The Edge Financial Daily that Yaw has been offered a new job in Talam Tranform and that he could be appointed the group’s director.

“The remuneration committee will discuss the details and negotiate with Yaw. He will make the decision in the next couple of days or weeks. The appointment is to make Talam Transform a professionally-run company,” said the source.

Talam Transform declined to comment on the appointment.

This article first appeared in The Edge Financial Daily, on July 23, 2014.