The serviced residence unit of CapitaLand has struck deals with developers in China, Japan and Thailand to manage apartments under development and future projects, it said yesterday.
In China, The Ascott is partnering township developer Riverside Group to launch serviced residences in Zhejiang, Chongqing and upcoming riverside-themed towns in other key cities.
This tie-up will start with two serviced residences, with a total of 350 units, in Zhejiang and Chongqing.
It follows Ascott's contract with Riverside Group to manage the 190-unit Ascott Riverside Garden Beijing, which opened in November last year, CapitaLand said.
In Japan, Ascott entered an agreement with NTT Urban Development Corp - a subsidiary of Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corp - to jointly explore serviced residence opportunities. The companies are also working on two projects, in Fukuoka and Yokohama.
In Thailand, Ascott is partnering Ananda Development, which is expanding into the serviced residence business.
The first four properties under the collaboration - Somerset Rama 9 Bangkok, Ascott Embassy Sathorn Bangkok, Ascott Thonglor Bangkok and a property in Sukhumvit 8 - will offer close to 1,500 apartment units when they open between 2020 and 2021.
Ascott added 1,607 units to its portfolio in January and February. It will record management and lease agreements for a further 3,400 apartments across 14 properties in 10 cities in China, Japan, Thailand and Indonesia in this quarter.
These will include a lease agreement with department store chain Takashimaya to operate the first Citadines Apart'hotel in Osaka.
Ascott chief executive Kevin Goh said: "By leveraging Ascott's global network of close to 100,000 corporate clients, we will create significant cross-marketing opportunities across the globe for our properties to maximise returns for our partners.
"We are confident of achieving our global target of 80,000 units this year, and to double our portfolio to 160,000 units by 2023.
"We will continue to scale up through investments, strategic alliances, management contracts, leases and franchises."
