HONG KONG -- Henderson Land Development has purchased Hong Kong's most expensive plot of commercial land from the government with a record-breaking bid of HK$50.8 billion ($6.5 billion), vowing to create a "world class" green landmark in the skyscraper-dominated area.
The prime harborfront property on Hong Kong island alongside the International Finance Centre -- the city's second-tallest structure -- measures 516,316 sq. feet (48,000 sq. meters) and adds to Henderson's portfolio in Central District. The winning bid broke the previous record set by Sun Hung Kai Properties at HK$42 billion.
Henderson Land, founded by Hong Kong's second-richest tycoon Lee Shau-kee, said on Thursday that it would invest HK$63 billion over and above the land purchase price to develop the site and construct three buildings along with an outdoor space and public park connected to the harborfront.
That would bring the total amount spent on land and development to $14.6 billion.
The site is expected to be completed in two phases, the first in 2027 and second in 2032. The building closest to the harbor will be multifunctional while the others will be for office space. The buildings will be subject to a height restriction of 50 meters.
"We will use our expertise to give back to society," Henderson Land Chairman Martin Lee Ka-shing told reporters. "This project has more than 400,000 sq. feet of green space for the public," Lee said, adding that the developer hopes to offer events, performance spaces, among other uses.
He also said that the project will conform with ESG, or environmental, social and governance, criteria.
The winning bid comes after two enormous projects spearheaded by the government were announced recently to transform Hong Kong's farther away northern area along the mainland Chinese border into an international information and technology hub. But office rental activity in Hong Kong has picked up and is expected to continue, according to real estate services firm Cushman & Wakefield.
Lee also expressed optimism.
"We have full confidence, as Hong Kong is an international finance center," he said. "Central is at the core, and will always be a place in demand by financial corporations and international headquarters."
The government said only two out of the six tenders fulfilled the so-called two-envelope requirement, an approach used for the first time in the city and that takes into consideration the price and the developer's planning, design and integration with the surrounding area.
"The successful tenderer's proposal is based on the idea of 'a bridge' and aims to curate a world-class iconic landmark in Hong Kong, enhance the connectivity between the hinterland and harborfront in Central, and create a vast amount of green and public spaces," said a spokesperson for the government's Development Bureau.