Sihanoukville
Cambodia's New Investment Frontier
Story Curated In Collaboration with Damien Ooi
Sihanoukville, Cambodia
Many Malaysians may not have heard of Sihanoukville. In fact, the first direct flight from Kuala Lumpur to the Cambodian city only started on 9 Aug 2017 (that's exactly a year ago).
The Sihanoukville province is located in the South-West of Cambodia, approximately 232 kilometers from the nation’s capital, Phnom Penh. It sits on the peninsula within the Gulf of Thailand and is the kingdom’s premier seaside destination with various beautiful beaches along the coastline and tropical islands scattered nearby.
The province currently houses more than 40 operating Casino Resorts with many more under construction and will be opened in the near future.
Founded in 1958 by the French as the best place for Cambodia deep sea port and the best water for making Angkor Beer, Sihanoukville has 20 km stretch of white sandy beach and is named after King Sihanouk.
Today, Sihanoukville has the biggest sea port in Cambodia, a large agricultural community, international airport, growing tourist arrival, island resorts, casinos, a special economic zone and the main base for offshore oil and gas drilling.
Top Paradise Island in Asia
Koh Rong, the main island off Sihanoukville
- Voted by CNN, 2017
Top 10 Reasons to Invest in Sihanoukville
1. Cambodia's largest deep sea port
Home to the Kingdom’s only deep-water port, the number of Cruise Liners which dock in Sihanoukville Deep Water Port (SDWP) is increasing. On the other hand, the Sihanoukville Autonomous Port (SAP) is set to build a $200 million container terminal as part of an expansion project which is due for completion by 2022.
2. Sihanoukville Special Economic Zone
The province of Sihanoukville has three operational Special Economic Zones, (Sihanoukville SEZ, Attwood SEZ, and Sihanoukville Port SEZ). The Sihanoukville SEZ remains as Cambodia’s largest, with an area of over 1,000 hectares at present, and it is still developing. The $320 million development, once completed, will be able to host 300 factories, 80 to 100 thousand workers and will cover 11 square kilometers.
3. Expansion of International Airport
The refurbished airport opened its doors in June 2018 with increased direct flights to China, Vietnam, and Malaysia. Domestic flights also increased their frequency in the first quarter of 2018, which lead to an overall passenger traffic increase of 182.2% to 33,040 passengers from the previous year.
4. Oil & Gas Base for Cambodia
Cambodia's first oil refinery is built in Sihanoukville with the first drop of oil expected to be out in 2019.
5. Tourism and Entertainment City
Sihanoukville is the only province in Cambodia with long stretch of beach and islands within easy reach. The town is experiencing a great tourism boom and it is expected to have 70 casinos opened by the end of 2019.
6. Infrastructure Upgrade
Upgrading works to The National Road 4, a highway linking Phnom Penh to Sihanoukville, is expected to be completed in 2019.
7. Lack of Residential and Luxury Condominium
The influx of tourists and expats have resulted in a spike in the demand for quality residences. With the increasing accessibility to Sihanoukville via air or land, the supply of hotels and accommodations are not catching up fast.
8. High Yield and High Growth
According to Realestate.com.kh, the average percentage of growth year-on-year is around 15-25 percent for land located in the city center. For areas along the seaside and main commercial roads, prices rose by 50 percent in 2015.
9. Foreigner Friendly
Cambodia allows 100% foreign ownership on freehold strata properties. And to date, there is no capital control on foreign investment.
10. Consistent Strong GDP and Young Population
For the past 20 years, Cambodia's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth rate averages at 7%. According to Ross Wheble, Country Manager of Knight Frank Cambodia, the country has recorded one of the world’s top 10 and most consistent GDP growth rates since 2014.
Source: Realestate.com.kh
Source: Realestate.com.kh
Properties in Sihanoukville
These are some of the new properties currently for sale in the market:
D'Seaview, Sihanoukville
Mixed development consisting of residential, commercial and a hotel.
Price: from US$95,000 (approx RM387,000) for a 1 bedroom apartment
Developer: Camhomes (a member of HLH Group Singapore)
The Seagate Suite, Sihanoukville
Mixed development consisting of residential and commercial
Price: from US$70,000 (approx RM285,000) for a studio
Developer: KHCN Investment & Development Co,. Ltd
Blue Bay Condominium, Sihanoukville
1-3 bedroom seafront condominium
Price: from: US$150,000 (approx RM612,000) for a 1 bedroom apartment
Developer: Shu Jian Tian Yu Development Co., Ltd.
D'Seaview Sihanoukville
D'Seaview Sihanoukville
The Seagate Suite Sihanoukville
The Seagate Suite Sihanoukville
Blue Bay Condominium Sihanoukville
Blue Bay Condominium Sihanoukville
Damien Ooi, Head of Project Sales & Marketing – Carey Real Estate Group
Damien Ooi, Head of Project Sales & Marketing – Carey Real Estate Group
This special feature on Sihanoukville is brought to you in collaboration with Mr Damien Ooi, a specialist in Cambodian properties.
Damien has been in the real estate industry for more than 10 years and is currently the head of project sales and marketing for Carey Real Estate Group in Malaysia, a real estate agency established in 1983 with 5 branches in Malaysia. He specialises in development projects in Asia Pacific, particularly in Australia, Cambodia, Singapore and Malaysia, focusing on high end residentials, commercials, hotels, resorts and villas which deliver high yield and good returns for his investors.
Damien is also a Director of Asiamax Capital Cambodia which helps foreign companies to setup their operations and investments in Cambodia.
