Chinese Developer Invests in London for First Foray into Europe

Greenland Group, the Chinese state-owned developer who recently made a splash by entering a joint venture partnership with Forest City Enterprises in New York on the Atlantic yards site, has purchased the 7.75 acre Ram Brewery site in London’s Wandsworth town centre and another site in Canary Wharf for £1.2 billion from developer Minerva.

Iain Withers reports the Greenland’s Groups plans for the Ram Brewery site: “The Wandsworth site has outline planning permission for a 36-storey tower incorporating 166 flats and 9,500 sqm of commercial space for new shops, cafes, bars and restaurants, alongside 661 new homes and restoring some of the historic brewery buildings.”

The plans for the Canary Wharf will become London’s tallest luxury residential building, totaling 98,000 square meters of development.

Zhang Yuliang, chairman and president of Greenland Group, cited London’s role as global financial center, as well as an open and mature city, as the reasoning behind the decision to enter Europe through London.