KUALA LUMPUR: KLCC Property Holdings Bhd (KLCCP) has denied being the buyer of Bandar Malaysia, in a deal reportedly worth RM12 billion.
In a shortly worded announcement with Bursa Malaysia Securities, the company said KLCCP is not a party to the transaction.
"KLCCP is not the buyer as reported," it added.
A business weekly reported over the weekend that KLCCP is in the midst of taking over Bandar Malaysia from the Finance Ministry.
Trading in the company's shares was halted for an hour following the announcement.
Bandar Malaysia, formerly home to the Royal Malaysian Air Force base in Sungai Besi, near Kuala Lumpur, is currently owned by TRX City Sdn Bhd, which also manages the Tun Razak Exchange project.
Citing unnamed sources, the report said KLCCP, a wholly owned subsidiary of Petronas, would make the payment for the 196.677 hectare land in two phases.
It said the sale is vital for Bandar Malaysia Sdn Bhd, the landowner, to meet its debt obligations.
First announced in 2011, Bandar Malaysia, was dubbed a '15-Minute City,' with essentials close by, and integrated with vertical design and diverse transport, including the Kuala Lumpur-Singapore high-speed rail line.
Earlier this year however, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim in a written parliamentary reply said the master plan for the Bandar Malaysia development was being reviewed by the government after it was approved in principle last year.
Anwar, who is also Finance Minister, said government approved the master plan for the RM140 billion development project in principle on Dec 8, 2023.
Given the vast size of the multibillion ringgit project involving government land, Anwar said the re-evaluation was also crucial to ensure that the development would spur the Kuala Lumpur economy.
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