Two leading Malaysian sovereign investors, Kumpulan Wang Persaraan (KWAP) and Permodalan Nasional Berhad (PNB) have anchored an inaugural joint venture fund created by Malaysia’s Sime Darby Property and Logos.
With the investment from KWAP and PNB, the Shariah-compliant Industrial Development Fund has received 70% in capital commitments at the first close for a fund size of up to US$250m (€237m).
KWAP’s chief executive officer, Nik Amlizan Mohamed, said: “Our foray into the fund is consistent with KWAP’s property investment strategy to invest into the thematically robust modern logistics sector.”
Mohamed said with strong underlying fundamentals supporting the segment, KWAP expected the fund to play a critical role in unlocking the potential of modern logistics space in Malaysia.
PNB’s president and group chief executive, Ahmad Zulqarnain Onn, said the investment was in line with PNB’s conviction in the growth and resilience of the logistics sector.
He said the combined expertise and experience of Sime Darby Property and Logos Property would ensure successful delivery of the project and generate attractive returns for PNB’s unit holders.
Sime Darby became the first publicly-listed property developer in Malaysia to venture into the creation of development funds within the industrial and logistics sector when it formed the 51-49 joint venture, SDPLOG, with Logos, now part of the ESR group, in September last year.
Sime Darby Property’s group managing director, Azmir Merican, said the fund was capitalising on the sub-themes of logistics and warehousing, e-commerce, and cold-chain.
Logos head of Malaysia, David Aboud, said the design and construction of the previously announced first two facilities at the 177-acre E-Metro Logistics Park were already underway, and the first phase was expected to be completed for identified tenants in June 2023.
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