Keppel Land: Ba thập niên kiên tâm với giải pháp đô thị hóa bền vững tại Việt Nam

Keppel Land: Three decades of providing solutions

for sustainable urbanisation in Vietnam Keppel Land has grown with Vietnam over the past 30 years. It is today one of the country’s largest foreign investors and contributors to urban development with 21 licensed projects and a total registered investment capital of about USD3.5 billion in the country. Keppel Land’s longstanding partnerships with the government, businesses and communities in Vietnam are sterling examples of the rewarding relationships that can be built between ASEAN countries. Moving forward, Keppel Land seeks to continue contributing to Vietnam's sustainable economic growth and development through delivering innovative and multi-faceted urban space solutions that enrich people and communities.

Mr Joseph Low (centre), President (Vietnam) of Keppel Land, together with Mr Tay Lim Heng, Managing Director of Keppel Urban Solutions, and Mr Phung Chu Cuong, General Director of Phu Long Real Estates Corporation, a member of Sovico Group, signed an MOU to cooperate on urbanisation solutions in Vietnam.

In 2022, Keppel Land celebrates its 30th anniversary in Vietnam, marking a rewarding journey that has seen the company grow with the country, from its early years of industrialisation through a phase of rapid urbanisation. As Vietnam joins over 100 countries in the pledge to reach net zero by 2050, Keppel Land stands ready to support Vietnam with its innovative urban space solutions which contribute to climate action and sustainable development.

Smart and sustainable cities

Keppel Land is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Keppel Corporation, a Singapore flagship multinational company which provides solutions for sustainable urbanisation. In the past three decades, Keppel Land’s adaptability to the fast-changing landscape and deep understanding of the local culture have positioned it well to support the Vietnam government’s push towards creating smart, sustainable and vibrant cities.

Mr Joseph Low, President (Vietnam) of Keppel Land, said, “As part of the Keppel Group, we can harness the Group's diverse capabilities to provide compelling solutions for sustainable urbanisation that create both value for stakeholders and competitive advantages for Keppel.

“A prime example of this is Saigon Sports City – a smart and sustainable integrated township which we are developing with Keppel Urban Solutions and Keppel Infrastructure. Through this project, Keppel aims to bring in high quality urban planning concepts, leading energy and environmental solutions as well as smart technologies and digital connectivity that can further enhance our sustainable solutions and offerings in Vietnam.”

Located on a 64-hectare site in Ho Chi Minh City, Saigon Sports City will feature about 4,300 premium homes as well as Vietnam's one-stop sports, entertainment and lifestyle hub when completed. Saigon Sports City is envisaged to be a bustling hub, combining high-quality urban living with vibrant and healthy lifestyles, which can be a model for other urban developments in Asia.

To develop Saigon Sports City, Keppel Land partnered leading technology providers to create a smart infrastructure ecosystem. This includes the development and provision of modern smart urban applications using sensing technology and Internet of Things, which will enable essential services such as security, control and remote monitoring smart infrastructure, as well as the monitoring of community vitals such as air quality.

Saigon Sports City will also have its own integrated mobile application which will deliver a variety of lifestyle, transport and value-added services to the residents and businesses. Innovative programming and placemaking concepts will also be introduced to create vibrant and connected communities in the smart township.

Deepening presence in Vietnam

Keppel Land entered Vietnam in 1991 after the country opened its doors to international investors. Beyond iconic projects such as Saigon Centre in Ho Chi Minh City, Keppel Land also developed several projects in Hanoi over the years, including International Centre, Sedona Suites Hanoi and Vietcombank Office Tower.

In January 2022, Keppel Land, together with Keppel Vietnam Fund and its co-investor, announced the acquisition of a 49% interest in three residential land plots in Mailand Hanoi City. Mailand Hanoi City is envisaged to be developed into a modern township with multi-functional areas comprising landed developments, high-rise condominiums, mixed-use complexes, schools, hospitals and green spaces.

On 25 February 2022, Keppel Land, Keppel Urban Solutions, Sovico Group and Phu Long signed an MOU to cooperate in urban development which covers smart and sustainable projects across Vietnam and the provision of related urban solutions and services, including masterplanning and infrastructure planning, placemaking and township management services to create highly liveable, vibrant spaces and digitally-connected communities, starting with Mailand Hanoi City.

Mr Low said, “We are pleased collaborate with strong local partners such as the Sovico Group and Phu Long to capture opportunities in the fast-growing capital city of Hanoi. With Keppel Land’s strong track record and execution excellence in Vietnam, we aim to continue delivering innovative and multi-faceted urban space solutions that leverage the strengths of the Keppel Group and our local partners.”

Beyond urban development solutions, Keppel is also partnering Sovico Group to explore the development and roll-out of energy and environmental solutions in Vietnam’s key gateway cities, starting with Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi.

The collaboration will include harnessing sustainability-related technologies and developing end-to-end sustainable energy solutions such as renewables, electrification, energy efficiency as well as the treatment of domestic solid waste, in support of Vietnam’s transition to a green and carbon-neutral economy.

Nurturing local communities

Keppel Land is committed to uplift communities wherever it operates. Over the years, the company has also contributed to the community through a variety of environmental outreach efforts and corporate social responsibility programmes.

For example, in April 2022, Keppel Land launched the Living Well initiative to provide water filtration systems that will offer about 20,000 villagers in both the Dai Hoa Loc and Bao Thuan communes in Ben Tre province, Vietnam, better access to clean drinking water. Sponsored by Keppel Land, the Living Well initiative harnesses the capabilities of the Keppel Group in providing solutions for sustainable urbanisation. The water filtration systems are able to produce 6,000 litres of clean water a day for domestic use, for each commune. The Living Well project took a year of planning, including land surveys, inspection and testing of the systems, and leverages Keppel Infrastructure’s expertise in water solutions.

In July 2022, in conjunction with World Nature Conservation Day, Keppel Land contributed 3,000 trees to the Dong Nai Culture and Nature Reserve, in support of Vietnam’s national programme that targets to plant 1 billion trees by 2025. Through this programme, Keppel Land seeks to highlight the importance of forest preservation and biodiversity conservation, and encourage its stakeholders, including the students in Dong Nai province, to become better stewards of the environment.

As Vietnam continues to undergo rapid urbanisation, Keppel Land looks forward to continuing contributing to the country’s sustainable development for the next 30 years, and beyond.