An 80-acre site has been set aside for a residential area inside Thilawa special economic zone, an official has said, with a 9-acre portion to be dedicated to condominiums.
Director of Myanmar Thilawa SEZ Holdings (MTSH) Nyan Thit Hlaing said a joint venture system will be in place for the construction of the condo complexes.
The 80-acre residential zone inside the SEZ will also include hotels, housing for workers, shopping centres and buildings for banking businesses. A 9-acre site is being earmarked for condos within this area. “The developers asked us how we sell the apartments ... We want to work together according to the percentages [agreed] in the joint venture,” the Myanmar Times on Monday quoted Nyan Thit Hlaing as saying.
Investors are being invited to construct hotels, petrol stations, banks and condos under a tender system, which is set to open for expressions of interest soon.
The 80-acre residential area is part of the 400-hectare Zone A, which officials in August said was around 90% complete. Some $760 million in foreign investment has been committed to Zone A.
At present there are 20 factories operating, with more than 40 still under construction. Some 68 companies from 17 countries have plans to invest at the site, Nyan Thit Hlaing says.
Once Thilawa Zone A is completed, SEZ officials expect it to create jobs for 20,000 to 40,000 workers, from Myanmar and abroad. The development of residential property is a major undertaking at the site, with infrastructure starting from scratch.
“[We are trying] to start a great urban system to support Thilawa. It is estimated there will be almost 600 rooms. The water from Thilawa dam will be sanitized to use in the residential zone,” he said, adding that ensuring a steady electricity supply was another challenge.
Buildings in the SEZ will not be high-rise, with most not going above 12 feet. However, with condominium construction projects it will be a matter of negotiating between entrepreneurs and the site’s management.
Factories and residences within the Thilawa industrial zone are forbidden to use underground water from digging artesian well. The water from both the Zarmani and the Thilawa dams will be piped in, sanitised and recycled. Water is to be purchased under a per-gallon pricing scheme.
Once the Lagunpyin water distribution project is finished, it will supply the whole SEZ, leaving the two current supply dams as spares. The state power lines have been extended in order to guarantee a regular electricity supply, and a natural gas power plant which can produce 50 megawatts has already been built.