CP Axtra Plc (CPAXT), a wholesale and retail business unit of Charoen Pokphand (CP) Group, has defended its recent announcement of billions of baht worth of investments, saying the expansion aligns with business operations.
Saowaluck Thithapant, group chief wholesale business officer, said CP Axtra is not investing in The Forestias real estate project, but rather Lotus's Mall Bangna under the trademark The Happitat.
"The company wants investors to know our investment in Lotus's Mall Bangna under the trademark The Happitat is part of our ordinary business strategy to generate investment value and returns to the company and our shareholders," she said in a filing to the Stock Exchange of Thailand on Wednesday.
CP Axtra operates the retail and wholesale business and manages malls for CP, serving as one of Asia's leading retailers and wholesalers with more than 2.7 million square metres of selling space. The company manages more than 1.5 million sq m of mall leasable space.
Lotus's Mall Bangna in The Happitat project is located in Bang Na, a strategic location for the company's wholesale and mall management business, said Ms Saowaluck. Construction of the project is more than 80% complete.
This investment will provide the company with a large mall and retail space in a strategic location within roughly 12 months, adding assets in its drive towards sustainable growth, she said.
