KUALA LUMPUR: The days of a Dutch Lady factory in Malaysia that has been producing halal dairy products since 1963 are numbered.
UEM Sunrise Bhd will demolish the historic factory in Section 13, Petaling Jaya in late 2024 to make way for a mixed-use development with residential towers and retail featuring a modern, co-living concept.
UEM Sunrise Bhd, through subsidiary UEM Land Bhd, bought the 9.93-acre leasehold factory land and buildings from Dutch Lady Milk Industries Bhd for RM200 million in 2021.
The deal generated Dutch Lady a net gain of RM178.6 million.
The dairy milk manufacturer reportedly said its board would review and decide how to use the RM200 million in gross cash proceeds by the end of 2021.
This might include financing the construction of a new manufacturing and warehousing facilities in Bandar Enstek, Negri Sembilan which is expected to be completed in three years (in 2024).
According to UEM Sunrise chief marketing officer Kenny Wong, the plant which is located along Jalan Khoo Kay Kim, will take about seven years to redevelop because it is divided into three phases.
Wong told the New Straits Times that the project will begin in 2025, most likely before UEM Sunrise's proposed residential development on a 3.7-ha Giant Mall site in Kelana Jaya, which it bought this year for RM155 million.
"Even though we bought the (Petaling Jaya) land, we are still renting it out to Dutch Lady as they slow down their operations before moving to Bandar Enstek," he said.
UEM Land previously announced that it planned to build a RM1.3 billion mixed-use development on the site.
But Wong said the gross development value may change now that the proposed project is under review.
"The beautiful thing about the Dutch Lady site is that it's still cooking as we speak. Every time we meet up, there is always something new to add. We can't commit to a lot of things until we take over and have our hands on the site. We need to go inside and look around first," he explained.
Wong also said that UEM Sunrise is considering transforming the river, or a monsoon drain, that runs alongside the Dutch Lady site.
"We are thinking about whether we want to enhance this river or if we can even do it. We don't know how the water flows, so more studies have to go into it."
During the signing of the Dutch Lady land sale in 2021, UEM Sunrise chief executive officer Sufian Abdullah described the land as appealing because it is located within the Draft Special Area Plan Section 13, which was identified by Majlis Bandaraya Petaling Jaya as a commercial hub as part of its urban renewal efforts.
