Keppel Land sees slow progress on Saigon Sports City project

The $500 million Saigon Sports City project, developed by Singapore’s Keppel Land on the outskirts of Ho Chi Minh City, has seen little construction progress more than two years after its groundbreaking.

Keppel Land, in partnership with Keppel Urban Solutions, broke ground for the project in November 2019 with plans to develop a 64-hectare site into a smart, integrated township in District 2, now part of Thu Duc city.

The township was expected to provide 4,300 premium homes, and such features as a waterfront boulevard, an open public plaza and a one-stop lifestyle hub with comprehensive facilities for sports, entertainment, shopping, and dining. The first phase of the project was planned to comprise residential and commercial spaces, and sports facilities.

However, as of May, the developer has completed only the home samples and bridge connecting the north with the southern part of the site, with no signs of further construction.

A Keppel Land representative in charge of media relations said the developer has completed site clearance and leveling and is designing the infrastructure system. Keppel Land is in the process of completing the necessary approvals for the construction of other components of the project, the source added.

Keppel Land, however, has not made public the timeline for key components like the sports facilities and residential area.

With up to $500 million in investment, the township was expected to make substantial contributions to the overall development of HCMC, Vietnam’s southern economic hub. Its status quo is likely to generate a question about the developer’s competence.

What’s more, the State Audit Office in HCMC recently pointed out that the project does not include a social housing area as required. According to the auditor, Keppel Land Vietnam reported negative equity in 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2019 due to losses.

Keppel Land, which has been operating in Vietnam for almost three decades, is slow in developing some other property projects, including stages 4 and 5 of the Saigon Centre complex in District 1 - the city’s heart.