Chinese Developer Faces Huge Losses On Artificial Island 

Another problem was that Malaysian did not get much benefit from the investment because the contracts for this project were awarded to Chinese contractors who bring in workers and equipment from China

As a construction engineer that has built structures on reclaimed land, I will say it takes 20 years or more for the sand to settle properly. Country Garden reclaimed from the sea and hence beyond the piled foundations, much of the island is still sinking. Recently, certain roads or parts caved in. I presume the buildings are piled to bedrock and I presume the bedrock in that part of sea is not that deep (from 35 M to 50 M deep). Any settlement of the buildings will be showing up by now but none has happened. I presume the buildings are safe but the land will continue to settle for many more years.

Driving toward the island from the highway, and seeing the towering residential units with hanging gardens rise out of the surrounding palm oil plantations bordering the sea, was surreal. The novelty of the concept, the sheer scale of the project exemplified by the sales gallery model, and the unaffordablility of the property captivated most locals. Nowadays, the duty-free liquor stores and the artifical beach remain the only draws.

I remember watching videos about Chinese ‘ghost cities’ a few years back. These were entire cities built from scratch but turned out to be empty after construction. What happened with those? It seems this story is similar.

I know investors are crying but if they can’t develop the other 3 islands I don’t think that’s a bad thing.

The project makes no sense at all. There are lots of empty undeveloped lands in Malaysia. To create an island and build on it sounds unnecessarily expensive. Its not like Dubai where the government is willing to sink billions to create the islands for bragging rights. Malaysia is a relatively poor country and land is cheap. The Chinese developers got too greedy.

This project was backed by Beijing, to give Beijing the ability to tell Singapore, "do as I say, or I copy your model and take your business away." I am so glad it failed.

Like many other Chinese real estate projects it was a very good way for people to take money out of china going around the restrictions of taking out more than 15.000$/year before the real estate cap of 50.000$/ year. Now it is too expensive and Chinese businessman use other gray systems to move capital out. I see the same on many countries.

Nothing more green and sustainable then artificial islands lol

Even from the beginning, I was strongly in doubt about this project. - environmental concern - those poor mangrooves that they destroyed - workers from china flooded our state (some or most are illegal, by the way) - they target foreign investor (it's volatile in itself) - over saturated of condo - unstable market - unstable govt

I am Malaysian- one of the main cause of the failure of this project was when the Chinese govt stops the outflow of foreign exchange out of China- they were targeting Chinese buyers

Before it was built, I expected this to be a flop. You can't have access to Singapore when there is a congested bridge and the train between Singapore and JB was not build yet. JB has so much cheap land, why even bother to reclaim land from sea. Singapore is building a polder to counter rising sea levels. I doubt Forest City had anticipated this future problem for the 4 islands. JB will get a city like Venice.

Oh wow! I worked for Country Garden in Shende. Our building looked cool with semi real vegetation on the outside. What a mess of a company, I only lasted 6 months before I was canned while on a trip to Nanjing

This is a norm in Malaysia. There was no overwhelming strong demand from overseas investors. The existing housing in Nusajaya and so many projects there were mostly unfinished. Many bought at first and bailed. The surrounding luxury country club project near was scrapped as well, this was before the shutdown in 2020. The island is theoretically a dead end and far from the city center. It was an over-stretched idea and had no revenue model. It was cheap money that spurred the development. Interesting part is who is going to pay for this failed investment.

Went to the golf resort last year. The developer didn't even bother to turn on the street lights at night

Singapore built over a million units of “dwelling units”, since 1965, over a period of 50+ years. There is enough economic developments & progress to support “income” and to buy a property….. what are Johor’s economic plans to support the whole Iskandar project of half a millions houses ?

It is a hideous blight on the landscape. So much of primary endangered rainforests are already replaced with horrible palm plantations, and now this montrostericity. My relatives in Singapore are disgusted by this. There is no amount of habitat restoration that can compensate for the dredged sand fill to make these "islands." Environmental disaster!

Great video as usual 👌👌

I heard they give away free apartment in Forest City when a Chinese buyer bought a unit in China from Country Garden.

The one thing that tech vapourware (Hyperloop, Spinlaunch) and real estate vapourware (forrest city) have in common is beautiful CGI renderings. I'm getting more and more wary every time I see a non-existent product advertised with CGI "demos".

I've been to Malaysia many times. It is a wonderful place full of friendly people. Its prosperous and safe and does not need to be accepting Chinese money or influence.

There's a consistent trend in Chinese companies: lack of transparency, although if people know where to look major problems can easily be found. Andrew Left (Citron Research) published his report on Evergrande nearly 10 years before their business model caught up with them. Country Garden probably has plenty of bad assets which are unaccounted for, making their books look much more attractive than they have any right to be. Fantasia has fallen, it's only a matter of time before the rest of the giant developers follow.

nobody: Chinese developers: "You know what would be cool? A whole city in Antarctica."

For such a huge investment, the developers did not do a good job researching the political environment and stability of the country.

This was doomed to fail becuse 2nd homes can never be sustainable. Areas of 2nd homes are simply empty large parts of the year and become ghost towns. Owners hope to rent to air B&B or holiday lets, but this soon brings an area down and there is not the market in a location like this. As the properties age then annual service charges mount up. But was the true business model an escape route for Chinese fleeing the CCP but concealed as 2nd homes? They could move their money out, and get residency and the cost would be justified if the CCP continued to run China into the ground or take it to war. Now the CCP has changed the rules and closed the door these properties have no value to Chinese buyers. Something that I noticed in the promo pictures is that most "digital people" look to be white westerners, is part of the sales pitch "its not China"?

Thank you Dr Mahathir Mohamad. Truly our savior as a Malaysian citizen.

the reality will ALWAYS pale in comparison to the amazing computer mock ups for any construction project

This City will look like a dystopian sci fi place after few years

What a win for Malaysia. 700.000 units for Malaysians. In JB it’s full of ghost flats that are just money banks. I rented a very nice apartment there but in the block of 500 units around 10 apartment lights were on at night.

For Malaysia, the risk is simple: 700,000 units mean 1.2 million Chinese can migrate into Malaysia and create another Singapore. Malaysia wants to compete with Singapore, not to invite a Chinese colony.

The wisest thing that should be on every wise individual's list is to invest in different stream of income and don't depend on the government to bring in money especially now the pandemic is hitting the economy

Building a forest city in an area known for mosquito borne viruses. great idea. Add to that you're right next to a port, power plant, oil refinery and heavy manufacturing industries.

Chinese really did not think it threw especially about the political issues before starting this project, it is so stupid that one can ask how anybody in charge could give green light to this project.

Tofu island...made in Xi-na is a real 🦠

Forest City เป็นเมกะโปรเจ็กต์มูลค่า 100 พันล้านดอลลาร์ ตั้งอยู่ในรัฐยะโฮร์ มาเลเซีย ซึ่งพัฒนาโดย Country Garden ผู้พัฒนาอสังหาริมทรัพย์รายใหญ่ที่สุดของจีน เป็นเกาะเทียมนอกชายฝั่งมาเลเซียและอยู่ใกล้กับสิงคโปร์ เดิมทีมันควรจะเป็นบ้านอพาร์ทเมนต์หรูหราเพื่อขายให้กับชาวจีนชนชั้นกลางผู้มั่งคั่ง อย่างไรก็ตาม ความตึงเครียดทางการเมืองระหว่างมาเลเซียและจีนทำให้การพัฒนาโครงการหยุดชะงักลง ในวิดีโอนี้ เราจะอธิบายว่า Forest City คืออะไร สถานะปัจจุบันของการพัฒนา และผลกระทบที่มีต่อ Country Garden

Well done, good report.

From the lighthouse marina in Singapore, I think Forest city can be seen. I am not sure what was the status but I thought there were lights on it.

What mic setup do you use because the audio? The reason I ask is because your mic used to be better but now it sounds like it’s coming from laptop mic! Also love your videos learned sooo much from your Channel alone

Say what you will about Country Garden but their early bird Buffet for seniors is amazing. Try the pot pie.

Chinese built = tofu dreg

As a malaysian i can tell this project is a scam. Most of the buyers of forest city are from chuna and other countries

These types of projects totally ignore the facts that sea levels are rising!

You forgot to mention the high speed railway project to Singapore is cancelled by the Malaysian government .

Just wondering about a brand new international school there, stating on their website it's fully operational. If there are only 500 residents presently on the island, how is this working out for the school??!!

Too bad they didn't develop a digital version of this where they could sell it for the equivalent price of a real life house. They could of made it work 🤣

The huge project is in bad shape at the moment. It looks good on the surface at first. Somehow, there have been undisclosable under-counter dealings among the developers and the government(s). An old autocrat purposely and practically axed it in 2018/2019..

One ghost city among many.

This is literally my favorite channel on the internet

Another mirage Chinese project.... i was always sceptical about the rise of the Chinese economy deep inside i knew it was a bubble created by an extensive leveraging and a lot of debts, fundamentally it was wrong because a politically communist regime can not run a country with a capitalist financial system, those are opposites which impossible to have both of them in one place, it was just a matter of time for them to clash, and it did happen recently. This is the dawn of the second largest economy in the world.

Excessive risk taking? I don't think so. Excessive cheap financing yes, the company borrows heavily in the name of making grandiose investments, which they know from the outset will lead to heavy losses, these isn't any chance of turning a profit. Instead the grand price tag and ilarge investments are a way to funnel money to some of the key decision makers behind the scenes. Once that is done, the public shareholders of the company are the one left holding the bag.

In Northern Thailand, there are similar Chinese enclaves but I didnt stay long enough to find out whether they are occupied.

Another developer hiding their liabilities? *shocker*

The builders biggest mistake is just to look for Chinese residents. They should of looked for people from a diverse international community example Europe and the United States

Islands could also have pillars (like latched for disassembly). To put a noodle on the bottom for floating removal.

It is not easy to make money in Malaysia. Many Singaporeans have lost money investing in Malaysian properties. Seems like now it's the Chinese turn to lose money. I'm sure some foreigners are able to do so but I hear more money-losing stories than money-making ones.

Chinese developer Country Garden is facing huge losses on its artificial island project, Forest City, in Malaysia. The project, which was originally estimated to cost $100 billion, has been beset by problems since its inception. One of the biggest problems is that the project has not been able to attract enough buyers. As of 2022, only about 10% of the apartments in Forest City have been sold. This is due in part to the fact that the project is located in a remote area of Malaysia, and it is also due to the fact that the prices of the apartments are very high. Another problem with the project is that it has caused environmental damage. The construction of the artificial islands has disrupted the natural ecosystem of the area, and it has also caused the loss of mangrove forests. As a result of these problems, Country Garden is estimated to have lost billions of dollars on the Forest City project. The company has said that it is still committed to the project, but it is unclear if it will ever be able to make a profit on it. Here are some of the factors that have contributed to the losses on the Forest City project:

Lesson learned: Never bet against Nature , no matter how much money you have !!!

The biggest and best ego trip story I’ve ever heard about in my entire life. The madness continues. 🇦🇺🦘

When i was growing up in China, Country Garden had commercials all the time. If you have a house from them, it's like you made it in China

What happened to the music? I liked the background music lol

Damn..... i used to see Evergrande container come and go from port to street. Now everytime i see Evergrande container parked in port there is police line and court order.

I love this channel

I'll bet good money that any further construction on Forest City from this point on will be tofu dreg construction...

This makes me happy. Anything to keep the Chinese in China is a good thing!

Wait till you find a Malaysia stock exchange listed company and try do a research, it is even more worst than you expect. HINT: Serba Dinamik. Anyway, this is a good video as business with Malaysia does comes with risk, rocky political risk, mixed with corruption and nepotism from a point of view as a Malaysian myself.

Pipe dream !

Last time I heard about it, I think it was turning into a jungle overwhelmed with insects

how much to sell now? I like to buy if price is attractive

The only selling point is close proximity to Singapore. Malaysians who work here probably wouldnt buy it either. So who is their target market? Also does it have to be an island? it seems wasteful since johor has a lot of unused land

If our financial system is precariously leveraged on a mountain of debt and corruption I can only imagine what it is really like in China once the curtain is raised.

Failed .. to unsustainabilty thinking it will make profits.. this company must find it not worth to invest after all . Rich Malaysians bought houses in Australia , New Zealand , Europe , Canada and US where the beauty of those houses same standard as they paid . I have been several countries around the world those people have amazing houses . If the foreigners bought the apartment here they are paying enormous taxes to maintain the whole complexs when their house so compact so small . Stupid to invest in this kind apartments when Singapore and Beijing plus Shanghai have same design . THE WORST PART THE QUALITIES OF THESE BUILDINGS QUESTIONABLE ON CLAIM AREA .. MEANS SAND FILL ? NOT TO MENTION QUICK SAND TO ABSORB THESE BUILDINGS LATER . NOW THE CRACKS STARTED TO APPEAR .. HOW? MADE IN CHINA!

The moment it was conceived I already know that it will fail cos Malaysia is well known for building property halfway and leaving it unfinished for good cos every politician in Malaysia all want to dip their hands into the honey jar.

Where can i invest in malaysian urban exploration channels?

It's gonna be a huge GHOST CITY instead of Forest City.

What happens as sea level continues to rise ???

Didn’t Dubai try this, with a tremendous financial loss?

I want to buy This Park for my playground 😍😍😍

Greetings from PERU Evergrand is more political no economic

Yeah we know what MADE IN CHINA really means.

See great differences between Johore state and Singapore just merely a causeway away. Why??? Singapore most expensive properties are bought by Chinese and other foreign countries no a issue to locals. Malaysia unstablise policies and short sighted mentalities are the main problem to foreign investors. Countless individuals suffered losses not to mention Chinese developers and even handful of local developers.

damn did the artificial island ever get finished???

To be fair this project was stagnating well b4 corona hit...also political conflicts are nothing new in Malaysia.. and so I wouldnt attribute these things to the decline of forest city. The whole development is poorly designed for its evnvironment.. they thought tht by building a super city with all of its 'unnecssary' flashy, ugly draws ( tht nobody asked btw ) and then to put a huge price tag on it tht, ppl would flock to it. They built for greed and got what they deserved. What i wanna know is who is going to be responsible for the clean- up of this monstrous disaster.

That's right, more Chinese immigrants....

It has been said before, but I feel it needs to b stated again, MEGA-PROJECTS lose money. Invest in good business practices from the ground up. Small businesses grow, reducing their barriers to growth always yields better results than billions into mega projects with theoretical benefits.

Could you do a video on SEC's lawsuit against Ripple labs? Just about everyone in the crypto community thinks the SEC is in the wrong.

What a disgrace and waste of money, another ghost city and island.

Crossing the border takes 3-4 hours typically, doesn't make sense to buy this property if you plan to send ur kids to Singapore to study or yourself to work.

Project this size is to line d pockets of d people who approved n involved. D new government will definitely stop d project unless further grease money is negotiate. There r many projects in Johore n other parts of Malaysia suffered d same fate. It happens in Philippines too where u see a change of President every six years. With projects of this size everybody wants to be involved....

crazy, i met developer in canada years ago, They chose to Maylasia's articial island, Investors and developer will be big loss. Takes hours to just clear visa in Maylasia, investors end up to sell a fraction of their investments.

They should construct direct link to Singapore by bridge or tunnel, only cars. Who wants the hectic of crossing the causeway.

Okay all thats nice but can we get like a boat from forest city to singapore Tuas rightr next to the MRT station or a new checkpoint right after tuas from singapore. So that Singaporeans would buy and live in forest city than elsewhere. Like a special Singapore to Malaysia access only bypassing the long Tuas checkpoint to Sultan checkpoint. that would speed up the travelling process and make mroe singaporeans move there.

No one in their right mind would migrate to Malaysia and make it their permanent home, considering Malaysia's bumiputera policy; non-malays are treated as 2nd class citizens.

We, as in the Global Community, are in store for a *Major* Financial Re-adjustment - Considering what is happening right now I'm guessing it should hit 3rd quarter of next year. This is gonna make 2007 seem quaint in comparison ~

Saudi King : Hold my sword.

The "boondogglers" should have learnt from the Dubai Palm Islands BS.

We can do things bigger but not better !!!

Of course they're not talking about the project, it's a massive failure and embarrassment. And a pretty stupid idea to begin with. Naturally, they're going to keep this s**tshow on the DL.

China and losses are the best combo ever.

I wouldn't be surprised if they were installing missile silos.. better to shut it down.

Loaning money to, buying securities in or food from China is just insane.