Rangsit Plaza Co Ltd, owner and operator of Future Park Rangsit, plans to launch a Bt4.7-billion property fund to refinance its debts and renovate Future Park, according to the company's managing director Pimpaka Wanglee.

Pimpaka said the company had debts of Bt2.6 billion. The additional Bt2.1 billion will be spent renovating Future Park Rangsit and developing 430 rai around Rangsit Junction for its next development: Future City. The company hopes the new upgrades at Future Park will make the mall more appealing appeal to middle and high-end shoppers.

The property fund is in the midst of the filing process at the Securities and Exchange Commission of Thailand (SEC).

"Once the Securities and Exchange Commission of Thailand approves our property fund in the next month, we will be ready to raise funds on the market by November," she said.

She added the property fund would be paid off over the next 20 years using lease revenues from the 100,000-square-metres of retail space at Future Park.

Rangsit Plaza will hold 33

per cent of the property fund

and will continue to manage

the retail space for a management fee of 2.35 per cent of lease payments.

The company hopes the new fund will turn it into a healthy property and management firm that can handle the expansion plans, particularly building Future City.

"We cannot say how long Future City will take to complete because we require a huge budget to develop the project. However, we believe that once our financial position is strong enough, the project will begin," she said.

The company's plans for its Future City complex include offices, a hotel, a shopping centre and an entertainment area.

Pimpaka said the company planned to spend Bt600 million on renovating Future Park Rangsit over three years, turning it into a "lifestyle shopping complex". It will start the upgrades next year.

 "The number of customers dropped from 120,000 visitors on weekdays to 80,000 and from 150,000 visitors on weekends to 110,000 after Tesco-Lotus opened branches at Rangsit junction and Klong 4. As a result we have to upgrade our plaza from a middle market to upper market complex," she said.

According to a survey carried by the company, the makeup of the Rangsit community has become more middle income, as opposed to low income over the past three years after new property projects that offer homes priced up to Bt3 million sprung up.

As the community has changed, so have the demands of shoppers, forcing Rangsit Plaza upgrade its target market, Pimpaka said.

The company expects its revenue to rise an average of 5 to 8 per cent one year after renovation.

Rangsit Plaza reported revenue of Bt990 million last year. It expects this year's revenue to hit Bt1.05 billion by the end of the year, an increase of 6 per cent on last year.

Pimpaka said in the first eight months of the year the company recorded Bt682.7 million in revenue.

Rental fees accounted for 60

per cent of the take, infrastruc-

ture-management fees 19 per

cent, service fees 18 per cent

and building-management fees 3 per cent.

Somluck Srimalee

The Nation