Vue Aston building set to break ground in the fourth quarter
Saudi shares slump after oil facility attacks
SAUDI shares slumped at the start of trading on Sunday, the first session after drone attacks on two major oil facilities knocked out more than half the Opec kingpin’s production.
The Tadawul All-Shares Index ( Tasi), which tracks the Arab world’s largest capital market, sank three per cent, shedding some 200 points in the first few minutes, before regaining some of the losses.
Just under one hour into the session, Tasi was down 1.50 per cent at 7,715 points.
The key energy sector plunged 4.7 per cent, while the telecom and banking sectors each slid three per cent.
The market was also affected by an announcement from the Saudi Basic Industries Co (Sabic), one of the world’s largest petrochemicals producers, that the industry faced a shortage of raw materials.
It did not name the reason but said the issue arose on Saturday – the day of the drone attack.
Other bourses in the Gulf also dropped. Dubai Financial Market was down 1.1 per cent, Abu Dhabi and Qatar markets declined 0.4 per cent each, while Kuwait shares sank 0.8 per cent and Bahrain’s bourse slid 0.9 per cent. Oman’s shares were flat.
Explosives-laden drones struck the processing plants at Abqaiq and Khurais in the Eastern Province early on Saturday morning, knocking out some 5.7 million barrels per day (bpd) of crude oil production and around two billion cubic feet of natural gas output.
The Abqaiq plant handles some seven million bpd of crude oil and billions of cubic feet of natural gas.
State-owned energy giant Aramco in March acquired 70 per cent of Sabic, the largest capitalised firm on the Saudi market, for $69.1 billion. THE $1 billion, 39-storey Vue Aston building is set to begin construction in the fourth quarter of this year and be completed in 2022.
A joint venture between Chinese companies Sino-Cambodia Investment Co Ltd and Mingda International Group, the project will be located in Chbar Ampov district’s Niroth commune.
Comprising a hotel, an 895unit condominium, a restaurant and a gym, it will be built on more than 4,000sqm and have a total floor area of more than 78,000sqm.
Deng Wanfang, the CEO of project developer The Peninsula Capital said on Sunday that it will offer comfortable and modern living spaces as opposed to Phnom Penh’s centre, which she said is full of people, congested traffic and an atmosphere that is “not good”.
“The centre of Phnom Penh currently faces traffic congestion and environmental issues. The project will be especially pleasant due to its proximity to the river with fresh air and views of Phnom Penh,” she said.
She said the building was very costly in part due to land costs and quality control.
T he pr oje c t l a y out wa s desig ned by t he US-ba sed HKS A rch itects, a world-renow ned desig n specia l i st, said Deng.
Ph nom Pen h mu n ic ipa l Department of Land Management, Urban Planning, Construction and Cadastre deput y director Pen Sophea said t he i mprovement of d iplomat ic r e l a t i on s b e t we e n Cambodia and China, especia l ly t hroug h China’s Belt a nd Road I n i t i at i v e, h a s a t t r a c t e d ma n y C h i ne s e investors to the Kingdom.
He said Chbar Ampov is a district with high potential for development with its large plots of vacant land.
“T h roug h t he Vue A ston project, I hope t hat internationa l investors will cooperate well with each other and promote Phnom Penh’s development a nd sha re benef its w it h a l l Ca mbodia ns,” he said.
Vt r ust Appra i s a l Co Ltd research director Hoem Seiha, who researched and compi led t he book Phnom Penh 2030s – 10 Predictions for the Real Estate Sector, told The Post that his research shows t hat major resident ia l a nd lu xur y housing development projects will emerge in Chbar A mpov d i st r ic t ’s r iver f ront area.
“Most of the land a long the river is in planning for major i n v e s t ment s , b u t t h o s e projects haven’t sta r ted yet. The area will change rapidly if t here is ever a bridge connecting Koh Pich island to the area,” he said, adding t hat he did not k now if a bridge was in planning.
The potential seen in the intersection of four rivers – Up p e r Me k o n g , L ow e r Mekong, Tonle Sap and Tonle Bassac rivers – has rapidly boosted land values in Chbar Ampov district over the past three to four years.
A land value research report for the first half of this year issued by Key Real Estate Co Ltd said land costs in Niroth commune range from $400 to more than $2,000 per square metre. In particular, land in Chbar Ampov I and Chbar Ampov II communes can cost up to $3,000.
According to data from the Minist r y of L a nd Management, Urba n Pla nning a nd Construction, in t he f irst si x months of t his yea r, capita l investment in the Kingdom’s c on s t r uc t i on s e c t or w a s wor t h $ 3 9. 3 92 bi l l i on, a 57.57 per cent yea r-on-yea r increase.