Latest News
Saturday, May 05 - 2007
Manazel $11bn in mid-range housing
Abu Dhabi-based Manazel Real Estate plans to put more than $11bn into mid-range housing projects in the Middle East and North Africa in the next five years, Reuters reported. The developer has projects under way in Tunisia and Jordan, and is targeting Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Egypt and Morocco.
SIB forms property arm
Sharjah Islamic Bank has set up a property arm called ASAS Real Estate. The bank wants to tap the ongoing property boom in the UAE. ASAS will invest in property projects as a means of diversifying the banks activities. Ahmad Hussein Amiri has been appointed director-general of the company.
Manazel two launches at Cityscape
Abu Dhabi-based Manazel Real Estate will take bookings soon for apartments at its Al Reef Downtown project and Prestige Tower at Building Materials City. Sales will open at Cityscape Abu Dhabi on 8 May 2007. Al Reef Downtown will release 582 residential apartments out of the projects 1,500. Prestige Tower has two 20-storey office buildings offering more than 20,000 sqft of commercial space.
Nakheel Coral Island
Dubai-based Nakheel is developing its first island on The World. Coral Island will be a luxury resort covering 73 hectares in the North American region of The World, Trade Arabia reports. Centre Marina Village will include a 150-room hotel and spa and marina. There will also be 300 beach villas, townhouses and water-homes. The resort is located across 20 connected islands and will create 9.5km of beachfront.
Burj Al Jewn launched
Bookings are now open for the Burj Al Jewn commercial tower at the Danat Abu Dhabi project. The developer is Al Obaid, the real estate subsidiary of the local Al Ghaith Holding. The tower is selling office space from 740 to 6,740 sqft starting at Dhs1,200 per sqft. Construction is due for completion in December 2009.
70% Downtown Jebel Ali sold
Limitless says 70% of its Downtown Jebel Ali development has been sold. Local and international developers have taken space in the 200 hectare mixed-use project, which is currently under construction on Dubais Sheikh Zayed Road. The first four commercial buildings are due to be completed by September 2007.
Palm Jebel Ali delay
Nakheel has suspended construction on the Palm Jebel Ali in order to redesign the project to accommodate more homes and coordinate infrastructure with the Dubai Waterfront project, Bloomberg reported. The move will delay completion beyond 2008, the news agency quoted CEO Chris O Donnell as saying.
Aldar $5bn land rise
Abu Dhabi-based Aldar Properties says it expects the value of its land to rise as much as $5bn during the next five to eight years, Reuters reports. Aldar has 340m sqft of land, of which 270m was valued at $10.62bn in December 2006 by US real estate brokerage CB Richard Ellis.
Bin Drai opens Park Place
The 63-storey Park Place residential and commercial building in Dubai has been opened. Built at a cost of the $272m, the perfume bottle-shaped building was designed by Australian firm Cox Architecture Planning Design. Bin Drai says more than 95% of the 17 floors of commercial space has been leased. One to three bedroom apartments cover 36 floors, and 15 floors of serviced apartments will be launched later in the year.
Palm Deira plan revised
The master plan for the third of Dubais Palm island projects, Palm Deira, has been reworked to save money and construction time, Emirates Today reported. The length of the island has been reduced by 3.5km to 12.5km; the width is unchanged at 7.5km. But total land area will be 60m sqft bigger, with more beachfront designed to attract greater investment interest. Developer Nakheel says reclamation work will be finished by 2013.
Al Arrab wins Al Jawzaa
Al Arrab Contracting has won a $15.8m contract to construct Tameer Holding's Al Jawzaa project in the heart of Dubai International City. Al Jawzaa includes 180 freehold residential units, shops and leisure facilities.
Universal City for Dubailand
Universal City Dubailand, a 22m sqft development to be established at Dubailand and costing around $2.2bn, has been launched. The centrepiece of the development will be a specialised theme park covering an area of 6.5m sqft. The city will also include hotels, retail outlets, commercial offices and residential areas. In total, the development will contain more than 4,000 hotel rooms and 100 restaurants.
MAF to build Mirdiff City Centre
MAF Shopping Malls has unveiled plans to build the $707.2m Mirdiff City Centre. Located on the Emirates Road and Tripoli Street, the 1.8m sqft shopping centre is expected to be completed by Q4 2009. On completion, Mirdiff City Centre will be home to over 430 retail outlets with provision for eight anchor stores - one of which will be supermarket chain Carrefour.
Emaar into Indonesia
As was reported last week, Emaar Properties has launched a venture in Southeast Asia with a mixed use project on Central Lombok Island in Indonesia. The development value of the project, spread over 1,200 hectares, is $600m and it will be located at Mandalika Beach. Emaar's Lombok project will have a 7 kilometre long natural waterfront and will feature residential units, hotels and a marina.
Rakeen to build $327m resort
Rakeen has launched the $326.8m Bab Al Bahr resort, the first project to be developed by the firm on its man-made Al Marjan Island. On completion in 2009, the resort will comprise a 290 room four star hotel, time-share apartments, freehold residential apartments, a shopping centre and a 25 storey office tower. A total of five residential buildings, incorporating 710 apartments, are earmarked for construction.
Nakheel to reduce fees
Dubai based real estate developer Nakheel has launched an initiative to eradicate hidden fees levied during property acquisitions, reported Gulf News. The firm will amend its internal procedures to bring down costs for property buyers and it will be more transparent with regard to cost information. Many home buyers in Dubai have been hit with unexpected charges from property developers in addition to the fees required by the Dubai Land Department.
Meydan hands out contracts
The newly formed company Meydan has awarded piling contracts for its new horseracing development to National Services and Construction Estate and the Al Dhafra Pipeline and Contracting Company via a tender process. Work is due to begin on May 1 and is scheduled to be completed in six months. Other contracts scheduled to be announced shortly include the Meydan Grandstand main building package and the canal construction package.
ETA Star in Chennai launch
ETA Star has launched its first residential project in Chennai, representing the start of a $3bn investment in the Tamil Nadu region. Construction will commence within the next few months on the $217.6m Jasmine Court residential development, offering investors mixed-size apartments near Chennai International Airport. ETA Star is to launch six projects in Tamil Nadu in total, including a township in Sriperumbudur.
FuGen alters Rainbow Towers
FuGen, a project management and investment company based in the UK, is to remodel its recently launched $136.2m Rainbow Towers project in Umm Al Quwain from a residential project to a high tech hub. The decision comes after it was thought technology based firms would be attracted to both the Ras Al Khaimah and Umm Al Quwain areas. FuGen is now talking to IT firms in Seattle and Bangalore.
ARY eyes Dubai
The ARY Group is planning to launch further real estate projects in Dubai and has estimated the combined value of its various intended schemes at around $272m, reported Gulf News. The firm unveiled the ARY Business Avenue commercial centre in Bur Dubai just last week, while 32 buildings it has constructed in International City are in the handover phase. The firm is also looking at a possible project in London.
Meydan formation unveiled
The board of directors of Meydan, the firm which will direct the development of the multi million dollar racing, tourism and leisure complex at Nad Al Sheba, which was unveiled prior to the 2007 Dubai World Cup, has been announced and comprises Saeed Al Tayer, Ahmad Al Sheikh and Malih Lahej Al Basti. Its office has also opened at the Millennium Grandstand at the Nad Al Sheba course.
RTA auctions off plots
Dubais Roads and Transport Authority is to auction off around 25 plots of land near to proposed metro stations, reported Gulf News. Abdul Mohsin, the CEO of Strategic and Corporate Governance at the RTA, said the land would be used for residential and commercial projects and would be handed over on long leases of around 30-35 years. Investors would have the opportunity to renew their leases.
Al Derea eyes Dubai
Saudi Arabias Al Derea Real Estate Company's UAE office hopes to establish $272m worth of property developments in Dubai, reported Gulf News. The firm is looking at both residential and commercial towers, as well as a four star hotel, and is targeting areas such as Business Bay, Dubai Marina, Dubai Silicon Oasis and International City. It is currently working on the $176.8m Silicon Gates project at DSO.
