Rustomjee Group to develop projects in areas near bullet train, Mumbai Trans-Harbour Link projects

Mumbai infra update: The Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train is expected to be completed by 2027 and MTHL is expected to open for the general public on December 25, 2023.

Listed real-estate developer Rustomjee Group, also known as Keystone Realtors Ltd (KRL), is in talks with landowners to undertake joint ventures (JVs) and joint development (JD) for upcoming projects in areas where the Mumbai-Ahmedabad Bullet Train Project is coming up.

It is also eyeing the Mumbai Trans-Harbour Link (MTHL) connecting Mumbai and Navi Mumbai, said Boman Irani, Chairman and Managing Director of KRL, during the Q2FY24 earnings conference call on November 06, 2023.

The bullet train is expected to be completed by 2027 and MTHL is expected to open for the general public on December 25, 2023.

The company believes that areas near big infrastructure projects will garner a great amount of future cash flow. KRL is planning launches with a revenue potential of Rs 4,000 crore in the ongoing fiscal.

"Wherever infrastructure goes, Rustomjee will continue to have a line of sight and keep looking at development opportunities. We are in talks with landowners for JVs and JDs in areas where, let's say, the bullet train extends or the Bombay Baroda (Mumbai-Vadodara) highway extends or the MTHL goes across," Irani said during the conference call.

"We believe these areas will garner a great amount of future cash flow. Hence, we want to enjoy the first-mover advantage in these locations as a branded developer," Irani added.

KRL has a gross development value (GDV) of Rs 38,000 crore, of which roughly about Rs 14,000-15,000 crore is from non-township projects and the rest is from townships, the company said.

Irani further said that the company is on track to launch projects worth Rs 4,000 crore in the ongoing financial year.

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"As we had announced at the start of the year, we would be launching at least one or two projects every quarter. What we have done in this quarter is that we have launched two projects in Thane with a GDV of approximately Rs 1,348 crore. We have similar projects lined up for the next quarters as well. We will stay in line with our announcements of having at least one or two projects every quarter this year," Irani said.

Focus on redevelopment

The company has maintained that the redevelopment of old and dilapidated buildings remains to be their focus and it plans to come up with projects in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) for the next few years before venturing into a new city.

"Redevelopment continues to be our strong focus area. Being one of the largest brands in this space, we have rehoused over 1,400 families so far," the company had said in its annual statement.

At the time of its IPO in November 2022, Irani had said that 70 percent of the company’s future supply will be in the Rs 1-7 crore segment in residential real estate.

Also Read: Rustomjee Group to focus on homes between Rs 1 crore and Rs 7 crore

“We are growing our strength in Thane. In Mumbai, we will not spread everywhere but stay in areas where we are strong and continue to study the MMR market,” Irani had said.