Finnish property company SRV is joining forces with Chinese property group Baltic Pearl CJSC to develop a $180 mln (EUR 125 mln) shopping centre in the Russian city of St Petersburg. The two companies have signed a letter of intent for the creation of a 50/50 joint venture which will develop the 8.1-hectare site in the southern part of the city.

Construction of the mall will be carried out in two phases and is expected to begin later this year, with completion due in 2013. The centre will offer around 100,000 m2 of retail space.

The mall is part of the larger Baltic Pearl project consisting of around 1.8 million m2, of which around 600,000 m2 for commercial facilities such as retail and business complexes, apartment-hotels, exhibition and tourist centres, as well as restaurants. The vast development, located on the Russian coast, southwest of central St Petersburg, also includes around 1 million m2 of apartments, and represents one of the largest foreign investment projects carried out by the Chinese government.