Greenland Group aims high in London property market

Greenland Group, the Shanghai property developer, says the 67-story tower it is constructing in London will be the tallest residential building in Western Europe.

Despite uncertainty about the British capital's real estate landscape after Brexit, Chinese developers remain optimistic about the future in the city.

The development, known as The Spire London, in West India Quay, costs 800 million pounds ($1.05 billion; 939 million euros) and will stand at 241 meters and cover 98,000 square meters when finished in 2020. It will be the second-tallest structure in London, second only to The Shard (310 meters).

Zhang Yuliang, chairman and president of Greenland Group, says The Spire London will be a unique part of the city's landscape. The project is the developer's most important in Europe, he adds, and will provide good-quality housing resources.

Prices of its apartments will range from 595,000 pounds to 3 million pounds, according to the prospectus, with sales set to start next month.

Greenland Group acquired the land from Commercial Estates Group this year, its second purchase in London in recent years. In 2014, the group bought a land parcel at Ram Brewery in Wandsworth, which is also to be developed into a residential community.

The company is not the only Chinese developer trying to make a mark in London's thriving real estate market. In June 2013, Wanda Group announced it would develop the 203-meter-tall One Nine Elms, a residential community.

Researchers say the demand among Chinese investors for high-end overseas properties is a major aspect of the developers' confidence in expanding overseas, particularly in cities with good education resources.

A major factor influencing Chinese property purchases overseas is education and the proximity of real estate to decent schools, according to a report by online property information platform Juwai.

wuyiyao@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily Africa Weekly 09/16/2016 page29)