The owner of the Gold Tower 42 development project has restated his promise to finish constructing the massive building, with construction to restart in 2018.

Seng Load, spokesperson for the Ministry of Land Management, Urban Planning and Construction, said YUNWOO, the company behind the project, sent a letter to the ministry in August stating that they would construct the building in the next six months, leading officials to believe that the development was started earlier this year.

“Nevertheless, I’m still not sure whether the promise will come to life or not,” Seng said. “Please don’t be hasty in your publication, because this owner has issued the same statement numerous times already, but none of those statements have been realised.”

YUNWOO has promised to restart the project many times but has repeatedly failed to follow through, with delays stopping the project time and again. The company claimed to spend $240 million on construction using South Korean construction company Hanil Construction.

Experts said they were optimistic about the building’s prospects if it is ever finished.

Kim Heang, head of the Cambodian Valuers and Real Estate Agents Association, said the project would be successful if it were restarted because it is located in a prime Phnom Penh location and is adjacent to all of the major boulevards.

“Nonetheless, the company developing this building should gather the trust and confidence of the people before putting units up for sale because they’ve already lost a lot of people’s trust,” he said.

The building was started at the height of the world’s economic crisis in 2008 and was rebuilt in 2010. They finished 32 stories of the building before construction was halted again.