UEM Sunrise to sell land parcels for data centres

UEM Sunrise chief executive officer Sufian Abdullah.

PETALING JAYA: UEM Sunrise Bhd joined the list of property developers selling their land for the development of data centres, a day after Eco World Development Group Bhd announced the RM402mil sale of industrial land to Microsoft.

UEM Sunrise, which is controlled by Khazanah Nasional Bhd, said it is selling its two land parcels in Iskandar Puteri, Johor, to a global data centre player for RM144.9mil.

In a statement yesterday, the group said its two wholly-owned subsidiaries, UEM Land Bhd and Nusajaya Rise Sdn Bhd have entered into a conditional sale and purchase agreement for the disposal of the freehold land measuring 11.7 hectares.UEM Sunrise, Malaysia’s fourth largest property developer by market capitalisation, did not disclose the name of the data centre player that is buying the land in East Ledang, Iskandar Puteri.

However, its chief executive officer Sufian Abdullah said the strategic land divestment builds on the memorandum of understanding signed in May with Sydney-based LOGOS Infrastructure Holdco Pte Ltd to develop a data centre campus in Gerbang Nusajaya.

It is unsure whether the planned data centre campus has been downsized as it was initially announced in May that the development will be located on a 30ha site.

It was also expected to have a development potential of up to 360 megawatt (MW) of capacity.

The project is the first data centre announced by LOGOS in the country.

UEM Sunrise’s Sufian noted that the land disposal to the global data centre player reaffirmed the group’s dedication to supporting Johor’s data centre ecosystem, ultimately addressing the global demand for data solutions.

“Our southern landbank being strategically positioned next to Singapore, shall benefit from the growing investments in Iskandar Puteri Johor, as well as spillover effects for demand on our residential and commercial spaces.

“As we re-evaluate our remaining landbank potential, this divestment and monetisation strategy sets the groundwork for substantial technological, economic and community advancements in Johor,” he added.

Looking ahead, UEM Sunrise expressed its commitment to supporting the data centre ecosystem in response to its increasing demand.