Beijing - Vantone Real Estate Co Ltd, a leading property developer based in Beijing, plans to invest 15 billion yuan ($2.27 billion) over five years to develop commercial properties, according to the company's top management on Thursday.

"We will develop more than 1 million square meters (sq m) of commercial property by 2015, with the annual rental income expected to exceed 1.1 billion yuan," said Xu Li, who became chairman of Vantone Real Estate earlier this month, replacing Feng Lun.

On March 31, the company obtained a parcel of land in Shanghai's key business area at a cost of 1.55 billion yuan.

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The purchase is a key step in Vantone's restructuring process, which is designed to help the company adapt to the challenges presented by the government's rigorous price-control measures in the residential property sector.

Vantone Holdings, the parent of Vantone Real Estate, is attempting to transform itself from a property developer into a real estate investment company that excels in real estate finance and asset management, Feng Lun, chairman of Vantone Holdings, said earlier this month.

The company's investment in the commercial property sector currently accounts for more than 50 percent of its total investment, according to Feng.

"In the past eight years, the central government has issued 40 policy items targeting the country's property market. If we follow short-term market fluctuations, we will barely survive. So we need to have a long-term strategy based on industry discipline and economic development," Feng said.

Premier Wen Jiabao said on Wednesday that the country will continue its prudent monetary policy to rein in soaring prices while maintaining macro control over the booming property market.

"Beijing's residential property price may drop 10 percent this year, because real estate companies are facing growing difficulties with financing and rising costs," said Wang Chen, head of research at the real estate consultancy, DTZ

A recent report from the real estate services provider Jones Lang LaSalle said commercial properties, including offices and retail space, have demonstrated strong growth momentum in China, as indicated by rapidly rising rents.

The report said that with vacant space diminishing rapidly and demand continuing to be robust, average effective rents in Beijing's office-buildings market surpassed their pre-2008 financial crisis peak in the first quarter of this year.

They grew 5.1 percent quarter-on-quarter to 218 yuan for each sq m each month. The average net effective rents in the retail market grew 2.4 percent to reach 639 yuan for each sq m each month.