More than 8000 tonnes of steel is being used to construct the 26-storey, 111-metre tall building, which will be fully complete by 2020, said U Yang Ho, chair of Mottama Holdings.

The 5A-grade office tower, which is being constructed using Japanese and Taiwanese technology, is located on Pyay Road in Yangon. The structure will be produced by Min Dhama Steel Structure Co Ltd (MDSS), which is a subsidiary of Mottama Holdings.

“The main advantage of steel-structured building is that we can construct all sides of the building such as front and back simultaneously. So, we can reduce the duration taken to complete it,” he added. The steel structure of the building will also enable it to withstand winds of up to 120mph as well as earthquakes.

M Tower will also include a four-storey basement with 265 parking lots, which is a main requirement in Yangon. It will also be the deepest basement among all the high-rise buildings in Myanmar. “I hope M Tower will become a distinct landmark for Yangon,” said U Yang Ho.

The office tower will hit the market at a time when demand for office space has tapered. “Four or five years ago, the leases for office space in downtown Yangon ranged from US$8 to US$9 per square foot. Currently, there are now more office buildings and leases have dropped to about US$2 or US$3 for per square foot, said U Nay Min Thu, managing director of property website, iMyanmarHouse.com.

However, he added that “despite the drop in leases, international-standard office buildings and towers will still needed in the long term as the economy grows.”

Indeed, Motamma Holdings actually has eight other major projects in the pipeline. Including M Tower, the properties are valued at a total of US$1 billion and expected to be all completed by 2022, according to the company’s announcement on June 15.

The projects include residential apartments, office towers, shopping malls and public-recreation centres.

Four projects are being carried out with international partners: M Tower on Pyay Road, Min Residences on Mindhama Road, Mottama Centre and the affordable-housing project M Green Apartment in Yangon’s Mingaladon Township.

The remaining five projects are domestic partnerships: an aquarium within Kandawgyi Park, Harbour Trade Tower on Strand Road, HL tower on Pyay Road, Bonnamy Tower on Kyaik Wine Pagoda Road and Mottama Business Tower on Mindhama Road.

Six projects are currently under construction and three projects – Mottama Business Tower, Bonnamy Tower and M Green Apartment – are set to begin construction next year.

Source: https://www.mmtimes.com/news/first-high-rise-steel-office-tower-be-complete-2020.html