Retail real estate to see up to $10 bn investment by FY10

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Mumbai, Apr 30: Developers and private equity players are set to put India’s retail space market on full throttle with investments worth anywhere between $5 billion and $10 billion in FY09-FY10.

In moves that would lend retail space gigantic proportions, the Runwal Group and Singapore’s GIC will use a joint venture to launch a ‘Our City Centre’ retail mall over 1.1 million sq ft of area in Ghatkopar, Mumbai. In the second phase of their foray, they will develop another ‘Our City Centre’ over 7 million sq ft of area in Hyderabad. Mumbai-based ICS Group is their project advisor.

Equally bullish is Sheth Developers, which is building a shopping centre called ‘Viva City’ over1 million sq ft in Hyderabad and Thane, Mumbai. The company is investing Rs 400 crore in this new retail development and has not associated with any private equity firms.

The sudden gush of investments has also swept across smaller cities. Media major Dainik Bhaskar Group will develop a 7.5-lakh sq ft retail mall in Bhopal. With construction already under way, the mall is likely to be up and running in December 2009. The mall comprises a basement, ground and six floors with seven anchor shops, 180 retail shops, six-screen multiplex and food courts. JMC projects have been appointed as the civil contractors and Bentel Associates, Mumbai, are the property advisors.

On the crest of the investment wave, Coimbatore-based PS Group is developing ‘Our Grand Mall’, which is to be completed over the next 8-9 months. ICS Group is the retail management adviser to this project.

The pan-Indian ripples of the ‘boom’ are spreading by the day. Provogue India Ltd’s real estate arm, Prozone, and UK-based mall property developers Liberty International PLC, are building a big mall each called ‘Prozone Liberty Centres’ in Aurangabad, Jaipur, Nagpur and Indore.

According to sources, each shopping centre will be spread across an area of 1.5 million sq ft. Property Zone CEO Ashwin Puri says, “Prozone has formed a special purpose vehicle (SPV) in association with the ICS Group called Triangle Real Estate Fund to manage the Prozone and Liberty International’s upcoming shopping centres in India.” Meanwhile, DB Realty is developing over five retail malls in western India.