Planet Smart City to Develop Smart Affordable Homes in Pune, India, in Partnership With Leading Real Estate Group Kolte Patil Developers

The announcement follows the recent launch of advisory services in India, as part of the group's global expansion

LONDON, April 16, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Planet Smart City, the global leader in smart affordable housing, has announced a partnership with BSE-listed Indian real estate developer Kolte Patil Developers Limited to build circa 1,000 affordable apartments over an area of 21,000 sqm in Life Republic township, in Pune, India, enhanced with Planet's technological expertise and social innovation programmes.

The smart affordable homes, to be developed within Kolte Patil's Life Republic township project, will integrate modern functional design with environmental solutions and Internet of Things technology. Residents will have access to a wide range of shared services, designed to improve quality of life and strengthen the community. These services will be powered by the free Planet App, through which residents can also control services in their smart homes, interact with the sharing economy and engage with each other to coordinate community activities. Work is expected to begin in Q3 2020.

It is the first real estate project in India by Planet Smart City following its recent expansion into the country through the launch of its smart advisory services. The move, announced at the World Urban Forum in Abu Dhabi, will see Planet work with third party real estate developers and government agencies to provide its unique offer for integrating smart solutions into urban environments.

With a growing population, India currently has one of the top five most pronounced housing shortages in the world and will need to build 25 million additional affordable housing units by 2030*.  The expansion into the Indian market supports Planet's ambitious plans to develop 30 large-scale residential projects by the end of 2023, tackling one of the most pressing global issues.

Giovanni Savio, Global CEO of Planet Smart City said, "We are delighted to launch, in partnership with Kolte Patil Developers Ltd, a very innovative project, building the first smart development accessible for the aspirational housing market, in Pune. Thanks to our digital platform, we will integrate an array of services, offering superior quality for our residents. The relevance and the volumes of the Indian market are key for Planet Smart City's mission. KPDL immediately understood our multi-disciplinary approach and our investment with them represents the best possible way to launch our real estate operations in India."

Gopal Sarda, Group CEO, Kolte Patil Developers Ltd. said, "We are happy to partner with a global real estate developer like Planet Smart City for Sector R10 in our township project Life Republic in Pune. This is quite a unique deal which earns us land monetization benefits as well as profit sharing cash flows from the incremental planned development, resulting in strong returns.  We have visibility from a business development and existing portfolio launch perspective in our Mumbai operations and largely plan to use the INR 91 cr as growth capital for the same. Further, another tie-up with a global brand allows us to benchmark our governance, operational excellence and product innovation standards.

This transaction further highlights the brand equity of Kolte Patil as well as the value creation prospects of Life Republic as a project. Life Republic, being our flagship integrated township project in Pune, continues to witness strong demand both in launch as well as sustenance phase. The performance of project benefits from contemporary product offerings and best-in-class physical as well as social infrastructure."

*Report Brick By Brick: Moving towards 'Housing for All', by RICS (Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors)

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