Packer's hotel project gets approval

The Gazette notification has been issued approving three hotel projects including James Packer's Crown Ltd, but without gaming or casino facilities, official sources said. There would be an Integrated Super Luxury Tourist Resort Facility at Glennie Street/Justice Akbar Mawatha, Colombo 2.  It is an investment of US $ 750 million. In the next project proposed at the site in D. R. Wijewardene Mawatha, Colombo 10, an Integrated Super Luxury Tourist Resort with 500 rooms is to be set up under an investment of US $ 300 million. It will consist of high-end shopping malls, luxury residences and office spaces and service spaces with associated facilities.   The investor is Queensbury Leisure Ltd. The hotel project of US $ 350 million in the same area will be undertaken by Lake Leisure Holdings .It will have 400 rooms.

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(Source: Daily Mirror)

Krrish site to be offered to CHOGM business delegates

The Government is to offer the Transwork site in Colombo now leased out to India’s Krrish group to potential investors attending the Commonwealth Business Forum, official sources said.

This is because the company has failed to make the final lease payment and amidst accusations of corruption linking a top state official to the deal.

Some of this money has been returned to apartment owners who requested the money back after the project ran into difficulties. But there are others whose money is still with Krrish.

Apart from that, the official said, that without a formal approval of the building plan it was somewhat illegal to sell the apartments.

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(Source: Sunday Times)

Krrish square saga plods on

The government is considering an option of handing over the land allocated to the delayed Krrish project in Fort to another investor, authoritative sources revealed.

The process, being studied, would involve the new investor paying the rental upfront and that money being used to return the money Krrish has already paid as part of the lease rental.

At least two big Chinese and Saudi Arabian foreign investors have approached the government to take over the property by settling the lease payment, their local agents told the Business Times.

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(Source: Sunday Times)

Krrish project now confronted with environmental issues

The Krrish square mixed development project tainted by scandalous financial deals is yet to get the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) approval to kick-start the project, informed sources said.

The Transworks building site at Colombo Fort leased by Delhi-based group Krrish is environmentally not suitable for a mega mixed development project, environmental experts have said. The Business Times learns that a leading environmental consultancy service which carried out a preliminary EIA has concluded that the site located in the heart of Colombo Fort was not feasible for such a mega project as it will create heavy vehicular traffic in peak hours and environmental pollution due to emissions and waste disposal. Recommendations made in the EIA report have not been followed by the investors, Environment Ministry sources said adding that EIA approval on drawings and building plans is essential before the test filling.

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(Source: Sunday Times)

Krrish scandal sets stage for a major shake-up at SEC

The Colombo Krrish Square scandal over alleged kickbacks received by a prominent official to secure the legal rights to develop the Transworks property at Colombo Fort is to claim its first victim setting the stage for a major shake-up in the country’s capital market regulator, informed official sources said.

Construction work of the project has come to a standstill and the massive hoardings advertising the Krrish towers have disappeared and no statements are forthcoming from anyone on the current status.

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(Source: Sunday Times)

Sri Lanka leases out land for Packer-linked casino

Sri Lanka has leased some prime real estate in the capital to a local casino operator who is expected to develop a $350 million entertainment complex with Australian gambling mogul James Packer, an official said Monday.

The cabinet gave final approval last month to lease the lakefront land to a company set up by Sri Lanka's top casino operator, Rank Holdings, for 2.78 billion rupees ($22.28 million dollars), the official said.

"The land is given to the Sri Lankan company which is in partnership with the Crown group (of Packer)," the official from the investment promotion ministry told AFP on condition of anonymity.

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(Source: Global Post)

Chinese firm Avic gets special status for a mixed development Colombo project

The Sri Lanka Government has given strategic investment project status to the US$300 million mixed development project of Avic International Corporation in a prime property in Colombo.

The ‘Colpetty Mills’ land extending to 542 perches is owned by Shaw Wallace and Hedges PLC and a large slice was sold to Avic, a top official of the company, an influential group with lot of Sri Lankan Government contracts, said. The land has access from both Galle Road and Duplication Road.

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(Source: Sunday Times)