CapitaLand today welcomed the visit by Singapore’s Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong to The Celebration Mall, Udaipur – a shopping mall wholly owned by CapitaLand Mall India Development Fund which it manages – in the Indian city of Udaipur, which is popularly known as the City of Lakes and Venice of the East. This year, CapitaLand marks its 10th year in India and announced mall openings and new serviced residence management contracts.

CapitaLand shared with Prime Minister Lee that The Celebration Mall is the city’s first major shopping mall, and has played a key role in catalysing the economic development of its neighbourhood. Opened in July 2011 to much fanfare, the palatial mall also showcases CapitaLand’s strength in real estate development and property management; to meet the evolving aspirations and needs of Indian consumers through the provision of quality real estate products and solutions.

CapitaLand announced today its plans to open two more malls in India over the next three years, bringing the total number of its operational malls in the country managed by its wholly owned shopping mall business, CapitaLand Mall Asia, to six by the end of 2019. In addition, CapitaLand’s wholly owned serviced residence business unit, The Ascott Limited (Ascott), announced that it has secured a contract with Sandhya Hotels Private Limited to manage three new serviced residences in India. Two properties are in the major technology cities of Hyderabad and Bangalore and a third serviced residence is in Sri City, less than an hour’s drive from Chennai.

Lim Ming Yan, President and Group CEO, CapitaLand, said: “As the world’s fastest growing and third largest economy with a population of 1.3 billion, India is experiencing strong demand for quality real estate products and solutions as it undergoes rapid urbanisation and attracts more foreign direct investment. Specifically, India has been looking to tap Singapore’s experience in urban planning as it plans to upgrade and build 100 cities. India thus presents opportunities for CapitaLand to share our expertise in real estate development and management, particularly in integrated developments where we have established a strategic advantage, as well as in the shopping mall and serviced residence sectors where we have already gained a foothold in the country.”

“With more liberal rules on foreign direct investment in real estate, CapitaLand has been presented with a number of opportunities including greenfield projects, properties under-construction as well as operational-ready projects in key Tier 1 cities. We are also in discussion with several parties on management contracts for shopping malls and serviced residences. As the Indian real estate market opens up, CapitaLand looks forward to greater contribution in the development of the market through quality projects, benefiting end-users and at the same time creating opportunities for investors.”

CapitaLand’s two upcoming malls are Forum, Mysore, and Forum, Cochin, opening next year and in 2019 respectively. Both are developed in partnership with local real estate developer Prestige, with whom CapitaLand also partners for three other operational malls, namely The Forum Neighbourhood Mall, Bangalore; The Forum Sujana Mall, Hyderabad; and The Forum Fiza Mall, Mangalore. Including two other malls under development in Jalandhar and Nagpur, CapitaLand is Singapore’s largest shopping mall developer and manager in India with a total of eight malls.

Jason Leow, CEO, CapitaLand Mall Asia, said: “In Asia, India is the next big retail prize after China. India has a large and growing middle class with aspirations for a better life, and more than 400 million young consumers between 15 and 34 years of age who are driving purchases in categories such as mobile phones, fashion, accessories and F&B. Such favourable demographics are drawing retailers’ interest to India’s fast-growing consumer market, which is expected to be worth US$1.3 trillion by 2020, registering a compounded annual growth rate of 9.7% from 2000 to 2020 . Coupled with the relaxation of rules for foreign single-brand retailers entering the country, retailers’ demand for shop space in quality malls at strategic locations in India is set to rise. As one of Asia’s leading shopping mall developers, owners and managers, we are able to leverage our retail expertise and industry leading network of about 15,000 leases to support local and international retailers who are keen to do business in India.”

The upcoming Citadines Financial District Hyderabad, Citadines Sri City and Somerset Bellandur Bangalore will strengthen Ascott’s leading position as the largest international serviced residence operator in India with 10 properties across seven cities with more than 1,800 units. In addition to these three new serviced residences that will open between 2019 and 2021, Ascott will be opening Citadines OMR Chennai later this year and Somerset Galleria Bangalore next year. Ascott Ireo City Gurgaon and Somerset Diplomatic Greens Gurgaon are slated to open in 2018 and 2019 respectively.

Lee Chee Koon, CEO, Ascott, said: “India attracted over US$39 billion worth of foreign investments in 2015, a 37% increase compared with 2014. Tourist arrivals are also on an upturn as India welcomed more than eight million visitors last year. India’s fast-growing economy, increasing visitor arrivals and rising affluence present immense opportunities for international brands like Ascott. Our strategy for India is to expand in high-growth cities where there is strong demand for international-class serviced residences from expatriates, project teams and business travellers. We will establish more strategic alliances and seek investment opportunities as well as management contracts. Besides cities such as Bangalore, Chennai, and Gurgaon where Ascott is present, we are also looking at opportunities in key business cities including Hyderabad, Mumbai, New Delhi and Pune. India will be a key market as part of Ascott’s global expansion to achieve our target of 80,000 apartment units by 2020.”

About CapitaLand Limited (www.capitaland.com) CapitaLand is one of Asia’s largest real estate companies headquartered and listed in Singapore. The company leverages its significant asset base, design and development capabilities, active capital management strategies, extensive market network and operational capabilities to develop high-quality real estate products and services. Its diversified global real estate portfolio includes integrated developments, shopping malls, serviced residences, offices and homes. Its two core markets are Singapore and China, while Indonesia, Malaysia and Vietnam have been identified as new growth markets. The company also has one of the largest real estate fund management businesses with assets located in Asia.

CapitaLand’s listed real estate investment trusts are CapitaLand Mall Trust, CapitaLand Commercial Trust, Ascott Residence Trust, CapitaLand Retail China Trust and CapitaLand Malaysia Mall Trust.