JKH – AMW apartments delayed

By Duruthu Edirimuni Chandrasekera

The upmarket apartment complex at Vauxhall Street and Union Place planned in June 2006 by John Keells Holdings (JKH) Plc and Associated Motorways Ltd (AMW) has been delayed due to the ‘bad times’, according to officials of both companies.“We are working on the medium term project proposals, but any launch of the actual project will not happen anytime soon, mainly because of the bad times,” Ajit Gunawardena, Deputy Chairman JKH told The Sunday Times FT.

An AMW official agreed saying that they are waiting for better times. JKH and AMW struck a deal in 2006 on a ‘voluntary partial offer’ where JKH was to take 20 percent holding in AMW in a two tier strategy to develop their land at Union Place and the adjoining properties of the JKH at Vauxhall Street. Initially there was to be a partial offer to AMW shareholders to buy a 10 percent stake or 0.8 million shares at Rs.380 per share and thereafter the AMW was to transfer by way of private placement around 1.0 million un-issued shares or 11.12 percent to JKH.

AMW has 217 perches of freehold land in Union Place and the combined property would amount to around 4.5 acres of freehold land in a prime location. Under the plan, AMW was hoping to shift its businesses at Union place to a new location at the D.S Senanayake junction at Borella where the present Maruti showroom is located.