NEWS
CIBT subsidiary receives $10-million of investments
2019-09-04 17:12 ET - News Release
Mr. Toby Chu reports
CIBT REPORTS RECEIPT OF CAD$10 MILLION SUBSCRIPTIONS BY GEC OAKRIDGE LIMITED PARTNERSHIP
One of CIBT Education Group Inc.'s subsidiary limited partnerships, GEC Oakridge LP, has completed investments in an aggregate of $10-million. These subscriptions are a modification of the ones announced in the company's news release of June 18, 2019. The company earned a development fee which it has used to acquire additional units of GEC Oakridge LP.
About GEC Oakridge
GEC Oakridge Limited Partnership is under contract to purchase three parcels of land. The land is centrally located in Vancouver near the intersection of West 42nd Avenue and Cambie Street. The site is approximately 250 feet from the Oakridge subway station providing easy access to numerous education providers throughout Vancouver. For example, Langara Community College is only one subway stop away; Kwantlen Polytechnic University and BCIT in Richmond are only five subway stations away; and it is only five stops to downtown Vancouver where more than 50 language schools, trade schools, colleges and universities are located.
The Company's plan is to develop these lands into an 18- floor, 125,000 square feet highrise rental apartment building, subject to approval by the City of Vancouver. By utilizing smart design furniture featuring hideaway and space efficiency, it is expected that the property will have the capacity to provide accommodations for up to 475 long-stay students. The rezoning process for this project started in January 2019. The total development budget is approximately $102 million while the timeline for construction is estimated to be 3.5 years.
"We are very pleased that one of our subsidiary limited partnerships has successfully raised another substantial investment," commented Toby Chu, Chairman, President and CEO of CIBT. "GEC Oakridge will be a flagship building located at the centre of the City of Vancouver within the Cambie Corridor Plan, where the city has plans to allow for high-density rental zoning. The demand for Canadian education from international students has increased substantially over the past five years. According to the Canadian Bureau for International Education, the number of international students arriving in Canada to study grew by 119% between 2010 to 2017, an average growth of 17% per year. According to a recent report(*1), the University of British Columbia is experiencing a wait-list of 6,000 students for their student housing this September, an increase of 50% from the previous year's wait-list of 4,000 students.
"CIBT has a strong education platform catering to domestic and international students under the brands Sprott Shaw College, Sprott Shaw Language College and VIC Vancouver International College. As an education provider, we have benefited from the increased demand from international students. In addition, our GEC student housing platform allows us to further leverage our positioning in the education space and capture recurring rental revenues by providing short-term and long-term accommodations to students coming to study in the Metro Vancouver area."
(*1) CBC.ca article: