Reshaping of Malaysia: A project of $9 Billion

Kuala Lumpur is recognized for its stunning temples, busy marketplaces, and 400-million-year-old caverns. Oh, and it has a couple skyscrapers. Between 1998 and 2004, the Petronas Towers held the distinction of the world's highest structures, and it is now adding Merdeka PNB 118, the world's second tallest skyscraper, to its skyline. It's also one of Southeast Asia's fastest-growing urban areas, having evolved from a modest tin mining town in the 1800s to a flourishing hub of culture and trade. KL, as the locals call it, is now developing once again. However, this new chapter is about more than simply skyscrapers, large structures are still part of the agenda.

The capital of Malaysia is making a huge move in a different direction by constructing expansive mega-developments that may help it become the next Asian superpower it has long wished to be. Malaysia's experience since winning independence from Britain in the 1950s has been amazing. "We observe new construction and new businesses, which reflect your significant advancement and success in the economy." The nation has enhanced its reputation internationally by modernizing its economy and developing into a significant center for commerce and investment. It has also given us some of the most spectacular structures on the whole globe. Malaysia was one of the world's fastest expanding economies in the 1980s and 1990s, and although growth has slowed, the country still has high growth expectations.

Its objective is to become a high-income and fully developed country by 2025, which is three years sooner than previously envisaged. One way the government aims to do this is by transforming Kuala Lumpur into one of the world's most liveable cities while also establishing the country's first international finance hub, which it believes would rival London, Hong Kong, and Singapore. The city now has several major projects ongoing that will help it accomplish these goals, with much of the work taking place on a single massive site. Meet the new Tun Razak Exchange, abbreviated TRX. This 70-acre development will serve as Kuala Lumpur's new core business area. Consider it a city within a city.

Tun Razak Exchange, TRX

A lot is going on: 30 buildings are being built here, with a total gross floor space of almost 2.2 million square meters. TRX's projected gross value is 40 billion Malaysian ringgit, or $9BN. On the financial front, things are off to a good start. Some of the world's largest banks, including HSBC and Prudential, have already established new headquarters here. But it's more than just businessmen in pricey clothes. It will be densely packed with high-end housing, shopping, recreational facilities, and cultural centers, with over a quarter of the additional area dedicated to green space, which this city desperately needs.

Instead of being named after any particular piece of training equipment, the facility's name is derived from Malaysia's second prime minister, Tun Abdul Razak Hussein, and its closeness to Jalan Tun Razak, one of the city's main thoroughfares. The Exchange TRX sometimes referred to as the Lifestyle Quarter, takes up most of it. The Tun Razak Exchange, sometimes referred to as TRX, includes The Exchange TRX as a part. We don't blame you if the names are confusing. The Malaysian Ministry of Finance owns all of TRX City, a joint venture between Lendlease and TRX City. Six residential buildings, an office building, a commercial mall, a hotel, and a 10-acre park are all located on the 17-acre parcel.

Most big cities, including Kuala Lumpur, would struggle to find room in their downtowns for a park of that magnitude. That's why designers opted to build it on the roof, with lush flora cascading down and extending into other public places across the district. Its ecological credentials don't stop there; sustainability has been at the heart of much of the district's design and building work. There is an on-site wastewater treatment and recycling plant, the first of its type in Southeast Asia. TRX expects to save 500 million liters of water every year compared to the normal development of this scale. That's almost 200 Olympic pools.

Many of the construction materials used in the Financial Quarter were recycled, and many surfaces were treated to allow less heat from the sun to enter the buildings. That means less energy is required to cool them down. Today, the site is humming with high-risk activity, but it has been like this for years. For quite some time, one highly visible element has been completed - a building that truly sticks out above the others. The Exchange 106 is presently Malaysia's third tallest structure. At 446 meters, the supertall building falls barely short of the neighboring Petronas Towers. It was one of the first skyscrapers to debut in 2019 and has a 48-meter glass crown perched over 95 stories of office space and a retail podium.

The project was completed in three years, which is unusual for a skyscraper of this magnitude, with China State Construction Engineering overseeing the construction. The building boasts some of the most space in Malaysia, as well as remarkably flexible layouts and open-plan interiors, thanks to its column-free floor plate. Having all of this in one location, however, would be ineffective without adequate transportation. TRX is easily accessible by automobile and bus, with six main roads and highways connecting to it. It is also well linked by rail. Everywhere on the site is within a five-minute walk of Kuala Lumpur's largest and deepest mass rapid transit station, as well as the network's sole interchange.

Even though there is still more work to be done before the entire project is completed over the next decade, 99% of the primary infrastructure has already been completed. New roads have been created, old roads have been renovated, and pedestrian routes have been established throughout the development. This includes constructing a new road bridge over one of those roads to connect the main district to the Urban Quarter, where many of the houses are located. Four trusses 66 meters long and weighing more than 200 tonnes had to be hoisted into place using a crawler crane during construction. These lifts, the largest on the project, required the closure of all nearby roads and had to take place at night. It's all coming together nicely now, but it wasn't always like this.

Back in 2015, TRX was involved in a significant scandal that nearly caused the company's construction to stall. Even if 1MDB stole more than three billion ringgit from TRX City Sdn Bhd, the TRX project would still be finished. One of its primary sources of funding, 1MDB, a sovereign wealth fund, was discovered to have plundered $4.5BN and diverted it to bankers and government officials. As a result of the revelation, Najib Razak, the country's former prime leader, was sentenced to 12 years in prison. The government provided the necessary funds, allowing TRX to continue the project rather than abandoning it with a hefty compensation fee and an abandoned tower in the center of the city.

Today, development is back in full gear, with more buildings taking on in one location than you'd anticipate across the entire city. Nonetheless, this isn't the only area in Kuala Lumpur where significant new construction is taking shape. KL Metropolis is another massive construction hotspot to the northwest of the city center. It, like the Tun Razak Exchange, is a mixed-use complex of slightly over 70 acres being constructed in phases over two decades - but this location will be a new international commercial center. It is divided into nine large properties that comprise high-rise office complexes, homes, and retail areas. A supertall skyscraper, comparable to TRX, is proposed for the site: the 100-story NAZA Signature Tower.

It will rise more than 400 meters and be constructed on the same property as a five-star hotel, a mall, and opulent condominiums. But despite its size, the International Trade and Exhibition Centre, which has been there since 2017, will serve as the focal point. The objective is to establish KL as one of the most desirable locations in the world for conferences and other major events once all the structures that are now being constructed surrounding it are completed. That might be even better news for this nation's capital, whose economy is once again expanding. These initiatives serve as just a few illustrations of how crucial building is to the development of poor countries.

It was on pace to become the fifth so-called 'Asian Tiger,' joining Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea, and Taiwan as a high-growth, developed East Asian economy 30 years ago. That never happened, but with these projects coming to completion over the next five years, it may be on track to eventually join that distinguished club.