Source : Straits Times - 31 Mar 2009
THE race to build the Changi Motorsports Hub (CMH) has officially flagged off, and at least three contenders are jostling for the chequered flag.
After more than six months of delays owing to market research on the Hub’s potential, the Request For Proposal to build and manage CMH was released by the Singapore Sports Council at 3pm yesterday.
Within the first hour, two bidders - leisure-oriented SUTL Group and car-and-leisure group Singapore Agro Agricultural (SAA) - made their $10,000 deposits and collected the documents at the SSC office along Mountbatten Road.
The third bidder is a consortium of local and international firms - according to Knight Frank’s deputy managing director Danny Yeo, whose real estate consultancy firm is part of the consortium.
‘We’re very confident about our bid,’ said the SAA man who collected the documents. He refused to divulge more.
Optimism will be much needed to meet the SSC’s challenging specifications, which were developed with the help of specialist consultants Confluence and race-track adviser VDM Group.
The CMH will sit on a 41-hectare plot, the equivalent of about 58 football fields, next to the Changi Airshow grounds.
The size is more than double the initial 20ha plot set aside by the Government, thanks to added space from the Airshow’s carpark. There will be a permanent track of at least 3.5km long and a sheltered grandstand for at least 8,000 spectators.
The track, expected to be completed by 2011, will be certified Grade 2 by the International Automobile Federation and Grade 1 by the International Motorcycling Federation - so expect races like MotoGP, Super GT and A1 Grand Prix.
Apart from hosting international motorsports events, SSC chairman Alex Chan said the Hub also had to be a centre of excellence for motorsports training and education, and be financially and commercially sustainable.
‘We plan to have a circuit that runs 24/7, whether or not there’s motorsport activities,’ said SSC’s deputy director (motorsports) Fan Chian Jen.
This means bidders must also consider including entertainment, retail, convention and hospitality facilities, along with a racing academy and motorsports-related services.
Chan estimated the Hub, which will be entirely privately-funded, will cost ’several hundred million dollars’.
Among the returns: uniqueness.
VDM’s principal Enzo Biagioni-Froudist said: ‘The site being compact is actually quite an advantage, as it offers the opportunity for spectators to see the majority of the race, majority of the time.’
Proposal submissions will close on Aug 27. A panel comprising various government agencies will select and announce the successful bidder by the first quarter of next year.
An industry source said that Peter Kwee’s Group Exklusiv and Haw Par Corp are two other potential bidders.
Changi Motosports Hub
Where: Next to the Changi Airshow site
What: 41 hectares of sea-front land with capacity for a racetrack of at least 3.5km (International Automobile Federation Grade 2 certified) and a sheltered grandstand for at least 8,000 spectators
Which: Races expected include MotoGP, Super GT, World Touring Car Championship, A1 Grand Prix
When: Submission of proposals closes on Aug 27. Announcement of successful bidder, first quarter of 2010. Hub expected to be ready by end 2011.
Other potential facilities: Clubhouse, convention halls, entertainment complex, food and beverage facilities, general retail outlets, motorsports-related services and retail outlets, non-racing garaging facilities, racing academy, research and development facilities, showrooms, warehousing facilities with secure storage capabilities.
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