Hobart’s Welcome Stranger developer Hexa Group backed by multibillion-dollar Chinese international coal trader

They’re the group behind the controversial Welcome Stranger development that failed to pass Hobart City Council, but who is actually bankrolling the multimillion-dollar project?

SO far it has failed to get off the ground, but the controversial Welcome Stranger development has already generated a buzz around Hobart similar to the cable car and Fragrance proposals.

Hexa Group — the developer behind the $30 million proposal for the corner of Davey and Harrington streets — has vowed to consider its options after its plans were knocked back by Hobart City Council on Monday night.

It may have a local spokesman, but who is actually bankrolling the multimillion-dollar project?

Hexa Group — a Melbourne-based property development group — was founded in 2014 by an Australian developer collective and multibillion-dollar Chinese coal trader Quan Jun Da.

An artist impression of the proposed Welcome Stranger development from St David's Park.

Headquartered in Fuzhou in southeastern China, the industrial giant has registered capital of approximately $41.9 million AUD and its coal trading volume exceeds 10 million tonnes each year.

On its website, Quan Jun Da says it is a reliable supplier to major Chinese power producers and imports coal mainly from Indonesia, with Australia, Russia and the United States as supplementary origins.

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The company’s steady growth and high credibility has seen it become a well-known private coal trader in China and it has been nominated as a board member at China International Coal Trade Commission, the website says.

Hexa Group’s primary focus is property development, which includes volume townhouse projects, multi-level residential apartment buildings and commercial-use ventures that is complemented by real-estate investment, asset management and capital management.

It has a number of projects underway in Melbourne’s outer suburbs, including two completed residential developments in the southeast.

Managing director Leon Liu said they were acutely aware of the special nature of Hobart’s streetscape in a letter to Hobart councillors and aldermen on Sunday.

He said they worked passionately with their architects to design a project they felt was financially viable and compatible with the city’s special values, but were unlikely to develop the site in the foreseeable future if the application was rejected in its current form.

Welcome Stranger development spokesman Quinten Villanueva speaks to the media in Hobart.

Mr Liu specialises in accountancy and management and has a Bachelor of Business from Melbourne’s Monash University. Others behind the everyday operations of the firm include:

Chair Xuemei Li whose profile was elevated with the founding of Quan Jun Da, which he led to become a top tier private coal trader. His early successes included the development of multiple large scale hydro and power projects in China.

Director William Yang who has Masters degrees in Business Law and Accounting from Monash and experience in the financial, legal and marketing aspects of property development.

Director Chino Li who was central to negotiating an investment partnership between Hexa and Quan Jun Da in 2014. He has a degree in logistics from RMIT in Melbourne.

Associate director Rae Xiao who has an international reputation for sales management and business development with Mercedes-Benz. She has a Master’s degree in Accounting from the University of Melbourne and full CPA accreditation.

Project manager Paul Carstairs who immigrated to Australia from the UK in 2012 after successful stints in France with Bouygues Construction, Ateliers Jean Nouvel and CALQ Architecture.

Welcome Stranger project spokesman Quinten Villanueva is the director of Hobart-based developer Qapital Investments.

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