Gone with the Wind: Supertech says Rs 500 cr lost on Noida twin towers

Realty firm Supertech Ltd has incurred a loss of about Rs 500 crore, including construction and interest costs, because of the demolition of its twin towers in Noida, the company's Chairman R K Arora said on Sunday.

The nearly 100-metre-tall twin towers -- Apex and Ceyane -- were demolished at 2.30 pm on Sunday as per a Supreme Court order that found their construction within Emerald Court premises in violation of norms. More than 3,700 kgs of explosives were used in this operation. The cost of the demolition itself is estimated at about Rs 20 crore.

"Our overall loss is around Rs 500 crore, taking into account the amount we have spent on land and construction cost, the charges paid to authorities for various approvals, interest paid to banks over the years and the 12 per cent interest paid back to buyers of these two towers, among other costs," Arora told PTI.

These twin towers were part of Supertech's Emarald Court project at Sector 93 A on Noida Expressway. The current market value of over 900 apartments in the two towers is being estimated at over Rs 700 crore.

Arora said the total built up area in these two towers was around 8 lakh square feet.

"We constructed these towers as per the building plan approved by the Noida development authority," he added.

Asked about the demolition cost, Arora said Supertech is paying Rs 17.5 crore to Edifice Engineering, which was tasked with safely pulling down the structures, including the premium amount for a Rs 100-crore insurance cover. In addition, there are several other costs associated with the demolition.

Edifice had roped in South African experts Jet Demolitions for the project.

On the other hand, homebuyers' body FPCE President Abhay Upadhyay termed the demolition of the twin towers as a huge victory for flat owners and said it has also demolished the "ego of builders and development authorities".

The Forum For People's Collective Efforts (FPCE), an umbrella body of homebuyers that played an important role in enactment and implementation of real estate law RERA, added that the responsibility of development authorities should have been fixed in this case.

Realtors' apex body CREDAI (National) President Harsh Vardhan Patodia told PTI that the  "decision is symbolic of the New India that we are living in, which is all about best practices, governance and following the law. We stand by the authorities and Supreme Court in this decision".

Most of the organised developers are adhering to all guidelines laid down by the authorities and this will act as a good reminder for those who do not, Patodia added.

"This will set a good precedent for the housing sector. It will serve as a deterrent for developers to violate building norms and laws," said Dhruv Agarwala, CEO of REA India, which owns the portals Housing.com, PropTiger.com and Makaan.com.

According to property consultant Anarock's Vice Chairman Santhosh Kumar, the current value of over 900 apartments in these two towers would be over Rs 700 crore.

The two towers, which were launched in 2009, comprised 1 BHK studio apartments as well as 2 and 3 BHK flats in the size range of 1,050-1,475 square feet.

Anarock said the project was launched at Rs 3,200 per square feet. The price was revised to Rs 5,200 per square feet in 2012 when the number of floors was increased to 40.

Kumar said the current market rate of apartment at this location is Rs 8,500-9,500 per square feet.

In August last year, the Supreme Court had ordered demolition of the twin towers and directed that the entire amount of homebuyers has to be refunded with 12 per cent interest from the time of the booking.

The apex court also ordered that the Residents Welfare Association be paid Rs 2 crore for the harassment caused due to the construction of the twin towers.

The court had said the construction of Supertech's twin 40-storey towers having 915 flats and 21 shops was done in collusion with the Noida Authority.

Separately, Supertech said in a statement that the demolition would not impact its other projects.

"We have completed and given delivery of more than 70,000 units to homebuyers and are committed to give delivery to remaining homebuyers as per schedule time frame. We assure all our home buyers that the order of Supreme Court will not affect any other ongoing project and all other projects will continue," it added. 

Image: PTI