See Hoy Chan Holdings Group (SHC), controlled by the Teo family, is said to be in talks with several foreign hospital operators to jointly develop a medical centre in its highly successful Bandar Utama township in Petaling Jaya, Selangor.
"Several international operators have expressed interest in forming a joint venture with SHC to open a medical centre in Bandar Utama. SHC is now talking to three of them," a source told Business Times.
The source added that SHC and the foreign companies were looking at possible models for the partnership.
It is undecided if the foreign player will take on sole management of the medical centre to be built by SHC or both will jointly manage it, with the foreign partner having a stake in the business.
"The medical centre in Bandar Utama could be up and operational within three years of obtaining all the approvals," the source said, adding that regulatory approvals had yet to be sought.
Foreign hospital operators with a presence in the country include Singapore's Parkway Holdings and Health Management International (HMI), the US-based Columbia Asia and Austria's Vamed.
It is understood that at least one of the players SHC is talking to has no representation here as yet.
Industry players said that this operator is world renowned for its medical facilities and expertise, and is particularly successful in the region for medical tourism.
When contacted by Business Times, SHC director Datuk Teo Chiang Kok said that talks were "still preliminary". He did not elaborate.
In an interview in 2006, Teo had said that the Bandar Utama master plan would include setting up a medical centre and a retirement village.
Some 4.86ha near 1Utama's Phase 2 shopping complex has been allocated for this purpose.
At that time, Teo had said that the medical centre would offer maternity and paediatric care, while the retirement home would cater for residents in the area.
The group's plans for a medical centre were said to have been inspired by Teo's father, Tan Sri Teo Soo Cheng, given his involvement in the Tung Shin Hospital in Jalan Pudu, Kuala Lumpur.
In April last year, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak announced that the government was lifting the 30 per cent Bumiputera equity rule for 27 service sub-sectors, including health services. However, it is unclear if that includes hospitals and medical centres.
By Business Times
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