By Dhwani Pandya
MUMBAI (Reuters) -India’s largest property developer DLF expects to review offers from potential partners, as it works on a project to build luxury flats in a slum area of Mumbai that marks its return to the city, it said on Thursday.
DLF left Mumbai more than a decade ago, when it sold off land to reduce debt and turned its focus to New Delhi and regions around the capital.
It had since become one of India’s largest luxury property developers, building premium and super-luxury projects.
A major issue in Mumbai is a shortage of land, which the developers say means the only option is to redevelop slum areas and old apartment buildings, where they provide existing tenants with improved property in exchange for land they develop.
“I can’t say, give me clear, clean land, then I will operate,” Aakash Ohri, joint managing director at DLF, told Reuters.
In 2023, DLF decided to return to Mumbai by partnering with Trident Realty Group. On Thursday, it announced it was building a mid-range premium residential project, named “Westpark,” based on providing improved accommodation for the existing tenants.
They will get flats of around 300-350 square feet, with modern bathrooms and facilities, while the luxury apartments are three-bedroom and four-bedroom apartments of (1,100-1,500 sq. ft.), priced between $464,593 and $929,186.
DLF is aiming to build the first four 37-storey towers, with more than 65 lifestyle amenities by 2029 and expects a turnover of $267 million from the project’s first phase.
Ohri said DLF has received nearly 20 proposals, mainly redevelopments from companies interested in working with it.
Vishal Damani, CEO of DLF’s metro cities projects, said the proposals would be assessed and that the company preferred to partner with local developers to manage tasks such as tenant rehabilitation, while it focuses on development.
(Reporting by Dhwani Pandya; editing by Barbara Lewis)
