Myanma Railways has dropped its planned Chinese partner Sino Great Wall for Yangon’s new central railway station project. The Japanese firm Sumitomo has been selected as the new partner.
The ambitious development in downtown Yangon will take eight-years to complete and cost USD 2.5 billion. Sino Great Wall had been initially chosen for the consortium of development partners but it has been dropped. This happened after a track record of debt problems. U Aung Thu Latt, General Manager of Myanma Railways, told The Myanmar Times that the Japanese company Sumitomo was chosen based on the advice from international consultancies. The project will continue exactly as planned despite the partner change.
The consortium still includes two members that work closely with Sino Great Wall, the Myanmar Times reported. These partners include local developer Mottama Holdings and Singaporean firm Oxley Holdings. They are working with Sino Great Wall on two high-profile condominiums. Mottama is currently developing nine projects worth USD 1 billion, all yet to be completed. Singaporean analysts have flagged Oxley Holdings for high debt levels.
The eight-year, USD 2.5 billion Central Railway Station project is designed to improve the speed and efficiency of Yangon mass transit with a new, 63.5-acre complex. It will also renovate and preserve the existing Yangon Central Railway station, which is a heritage icon.
