NST Business
KUALA LUMPUR: Widad Business Group Sdn Bhd (WBG), is planning to build a mixed development named Widad@Langkasuka in Pulau Langkawi, Kedah that has an estimated gross development value of RM40 billion,
Expected to be completed within 15 to 20 years, Widad@Langkasuka will be a modern development with an Islamic and tropical vernacular concept that will change the landscape of Pulau Langkawi and become the main attraction of the island.
Currently, almost 90 per cent of the 1,979 acre site consists of the ocean, therefore WBG intends to erect a man-made island which will eventually span approximately 1,000 acres or 50 per cent of the entire area.
WBG founder and group executive chairman Tan Sri Muhammad Ikmal said besides elevating Langkawi's status into a world-renowned tourism destination and increasing the flow of foreign investment, the development of Widad@Langkasuka will stimulate the local economy and provide many more jobs to Malaysian citizens.
"For the state, this will also translate into additional tourism revenue and higher value of land in the surrounding area," he said in a statement today.
The announcement of Widad@Langkasuka and the project commencement was made in Kedah by Menteri Besar of Kedah Muhammad Sanusi Md Nor.
WBG, an integrated facility management, property and construction conglomerate, is a wholly bumiputera private company owned by Muhammad Ikmal, who is also a majority stakeholder of Bursa-listed Widad Group Bhd and Dataprep Holdings Bhd.
Once completed, Widad@Langkasuka will comprise tourism components such as five and six star hotel and resorts, an international golf course located beside the Marina Yacht Club, an international business and office complex, shopping malls, higher learning institutions, healthcare facilities and luxury residences.