Chinese real estate developer to invest $3 bln in luxury hotels in Cambodia

Cambodian Prime Minister Samdech Techo Hun Sen (R) meets with Zhang Li, chairman of Guangzhou R&F Properties, in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, Jan 4, 2017. [Photo/Xinhua]

PHNOM PENH - Chinese real estate developer Guangzhou R&F Properties planned to invest $3 billion within five years to build six-star hotels in Phnom Penh and coastal Preah Sihanouk province, a senior Cambodian official said Wednesday.

Zhang Li, chairman of Guangzhou R&F Properties, unveiled the plan during a meeting with Cambodian Prime Minister Samdech Techo Hun Sen, an assistant to the prime minister told reporters after the meeting.

Zhang said his firm has partnered with Cambodia's Royal Group, run by powerful tycoon Kith Meng, for the mega projects.

Hun Sen welcomed the investment plan, saying that the Chinese developer had made the right decision to go into a joint venture with Kith Meng because the firm had capital and Kith Meng had land.

"The prime minister said that it is the right choice to invest in Cambodia because the country has political stability, good infrastructure, and sound economic growth," the assistant said.

The investment would also contribute to the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative, Hun Sen added.