Mitsui Fudosan Co. Ltd. will start construction of Northern Taiwan’s largest outlet mall in 2014. The company and Taiwan’s leading developer, Farglory Group established a joint stock company on December 11 to develop the Linkou Outlet Mall in New Taipei City. It is scheduled to open in the second half of 2015, advancing its initial schedule of 2017 thanks to progress of administrative procedures and tenant invitation.

The project, to be implemented under a BOT scheme, has been awarded to Mitsui Fudosan through the bidding by the city government. Located in the center of the Linkou Enterprise Zone, a thirty minute drive from down town Taipei and a twenty minute from the Taoyuan International Airport, the shopping mall will accommodate about 200 stores with the total floor space of 45,000m2 in the area of 67,340m2. The special zone, where a new MRT station called Linkou Station will be open in 2015, is expected to become home to around 350,000 people. The design of the facility has been commissioned to a local firm and a construction contractor is yet to be decided.

The Japanese real estate company established a branch office in Taipei in August on the occasion of developing the mall, intending to strengthen its sales. It is determined to expand its business more actively in developing suburban shopping malls, housing and complex facilities. (2013/12/12)