Published September 10, 2008
Govt perks rekindle interest in Cyberjaya
By PAULINE NG IN KUALA LUMPUR

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AS costs surge worldwide, Malaysia is banking on its cheap land, good infrastructure, generous tax breaks, and 'hand-holding' services to attract multinational companies to its Cyberjaya hub.
Land there was RM35 (S$14.6) per square foot 10 years ago when former prime minister Mahathir Mohamad mooted the idea of a Multimedia Super Corridor (MSC) with its benefits to attract global firms to undertake information communication technology activities in Malaysia.
Land prices have since risen to RM65 psf. They could fetch above RM100 psf, but have been capped to encourage firms to set up.
Two recent newcomers - Dell and India's Satyam - could be the tipping point needed to accelerate Cyberjaya's growth, promoters say of the hub sited 30km from Kuala Lumpur.
Although the MSC has not spawned significant home grown technology, Malaysia has established itself as a top business process outsourcing hub.
Last year, Dell completed a 200,000 plus sq ft global business centre at Cyberjaya, while Satyam is building a 600,000-plus sq ft global delivery campus.
'They will also affect SMEs here,' says Redza Rafiq, managing director of Cyberview - a government-owned company that owns the land in Cyberjaya and the man tasked with 'restructuring the Cyberjaya project'.
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After a slow start - it has taken more than a decade for supply of enterprise space in the cyber-city to exceed 5 million sq ft, for example - interest has picked up in the last three years.
The number of companies applying to operate at Cyberjaya has jumped 57 per cent in the last two years to 474. Most are SMEs, more than half of which are involved in software development, Mr Redza said at a news briefing yesterday. Shell, HSBC, DHL, IBM and BMW are some of the 30 MNCs there.
Singapore-based Emerio Corporation plans to make Cyberjaya its new headquarters on completion of a 100,000 sq ft building next year. And Ascendas has acquired 2.8ha for a planned science park.
Malaysia has several other MSC-status hubs around the country. Cyber-centres such as Kuala Lumpur City Centre and KL Sentral areas have proved attractive - despite rents that are more than double Cyberjaya's RM2.50 psf - because of the many amenities around them. Some 20,000 people work at Cyberjaya now, but critics say the place still lacks lifestyle facilities.
So far, only 374ha of the 1,523ha of land for sale has been sold.