Construction Emaar share price declines despite first-half profit rise Dubai’s Emaar Properties reported a 15 percent rise in first-half net profit on Thursday as declining costs and surging other income more than offset a double-digit drop in revenue. Yet investors seemed unimpressed, and the company’s share price, and that of its subsidiary Emaar Development, were both down in early trading on Dubai’s bourse. Emaar […] August 10, 2023
Real Estate Abu Dhabi house prices 25% lower than 2014 Average house prices in Abu Dhabi are 25 percent cheaper than they were during the 2014 peak. One area that bucks the trend is Saadiyat Island, one of the most popular locations in the emirate. Known as the cultural island and home to the Louvre Abu Dhabi and Guggenheim Abu Dhabi museums, house hunters will need […] August 10, 2023
Construction Jamal Omar loses petition against zakat claim of $95m Jamal Omar Development, the company which has led construction in the holy city of Mecca, must pay Islamic alms (zakat) of SAR357 million ($95 million) for the years 2012-2018, after losing a complaint against the Saudi government tax authority. The building firm, which is listed on the Saudi stock exchange, made the petition after it […] August 10, 2023
Infrastructure UAE invests in battle against severe flooding UAE government bodies and residents are working proactively to combat the impact of severe flooding, as climate change leads to increased levels of rainfall. Dubai Municipality said it received more than 100 emergency calls at the weekend as a result of severe weather conditions, and the National Centre of Meteorology (NCM) has warned that heavy […] August 10, 2023
Construction Parsons wins $52m road design contract in Qatar The Qatar government’s Public Works Authority (Ashghal) has awarded a contract to US firm Parsons Corporation to deliver engineering consultancy services for a new road and infrastructure framework. The $52 million, six-year contract includes design for roads and infrastructure projects within Doha city. More than half of Qatar’s three million-strong population lives in the capital […] August 9, 2023
Construction Saudi Electricity profit falls 27% as funding costs rise Saudi Electricity Company (SEC) reported a net profit after zakat and tax of SAR4.02 billion ($1.07 billion) in the second quarter of 2023, a decline of 27 percent year on year. Revenue stood at SAR19.72 billion in the three months to June 2023, up 1.63 percent from SAR19.40 billion in Q2 2022, the utility provider […] August 9, 2023
Video length: 02:36 VIDEO Real Estate Dubai office rents spike as employers vie for talent Office rents in Dubai rose sharply in the first half of this year as demand continues to grow, according to new research. Demand reached 580,000 sq ft in H1 2023, a 23 percent increase on the same period last year. Businesses are gravitating towards Grade A space, using the high-quality offices as a “showroom” to […] August 8, 2023
Construction UAE’s construction activity rises despite cost hikes Construction activity in the UAE rose by almost 50 percent in the second quarter of 2023, despite higher raw material costs. The increase in workload was driven by the country’s residential sector (up 55 percent). Commercial and infrastructure were also buoyant, with activity up 35 percent and 44 percent respectively, according to the Royal Institution […] August 8, 2023
Construction Danube’s new $218m housing project to be ready by 2026 Danube Properties has launched an AED800 million ($217.8 million) twin-tower housing project in Dubai’s Jumeirah Village Circle, which is expected to be completed in the fourth quarter of 2026. The 40- and 46-storey tower project, Elitz 3, will have 750 units, the Dubai-based developer said in a statement. The new development is the ninth project […] August 8, 2023
Real Estate RAK Properties’ profit surges 245% to $24m in H1 2023 RAK Properties on Thursday reported net profit for the first half of 2023 surged 245 percent year on year to AED88.19 million ($24.01 million). Revenue at the Abu Dhabi-listed developer rose by an annual 164 percent to AED511.64 million during the six months, driven by high demand for new project launches in both Abu Dhabi […] August 3, 2023
Tourism Saudi giga-project Red Sea to open first hotels this year The first three hotels at Saudi Arabia’s multi-billion dollar Red Sea destination are on track to open later this year, its developer announced on Wednesday. Red Sea Global (RSG), the company behind tourism destinations Amaala and The Red Sea, also said the first domestic flights are set to take off from its international airport before […] August 2, 2023
Infrastructure GCC needs 1,127 new schools by 2027 as enrolment rises The Gulf will need over a thousand new schools by 2027, according to a new report published on Wednesday. The prediction is based on the total number of students in the GCC growing by 1.6 percent annually to reach 14.2 million by 2027. Growth in student enrolment numbers at K-12 (kindergarten to 12th grade, or […] August 2, 2023
Real Estate Abu Dhabi firms in talks for $12bn real estate and tourism giant Abu Dhabi’s ambitions to rival its neighbour Dubai as a global events destination have stepped up a notch with talks to create one of the largest real estate, hospitality, events and catering platforms in the region. Sovereign wealth fund ADQ and IHC Capital Holding have submitted an offer to wrap some of their shareholdings into real […] August 2, 2023
Real Estate Looming deadline sees scramble for Riyadh offices As an end of year deadline for setting up regional headquarters in Saudi Arabia looms, international companies are taking lower grade Riyadh office space due to a shortage of availability in prime locations. Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman announced in February 2021 plans to transform Riyadh into one of the top cities in the world, […] August 2, 2023
Real Estate Oyo expands to meet expat demand for Abu Dhabi flats Indian hospitality chain Oyo is adding 2,000 apartments to its offering in Abu Dhabi as demand grows for expat housing. The furnished units will be available for long-term rent and many will be located in business districts such as Khalifa City, Al Zeina, Al Raha, Al Reem Island, Al Reef and Al Mushrif. Other apartments […] August 2, 2023
Construction UAE-UK Business Council targets building emissions Decarbonising the built environment should be a key aim for the UK and UAE as they work to accelerate the energy transition, the head of the UAE-UK Business Council has told AGBI. The council’s executive director Bradley Jones said the two countries had “a great deal of expertise in retrofitting existing buildings and developing alternative, […] August 1, 2023
Real Estate Aldar targets China as sales to overseas buyers balloon Aldar Properties is working to attract more Chinese customers as it reports a fourfold increase in sales to overseas and expat buyers for the first half of the year. “One interesting demographic we are starting to see is the Chinese,” said Faisal Falaknaz, group chief financial and sustainability officer at the Abu Dhabi developer. “It […] August 1, 2023
Video length: 03:53 VIDEO Construction Dubai tests modular building to cut demand down to size Dubai Municipality has awarded Linq Modular a licence to start work on a pilot for a seven-storey modular building. Linq will design and build the pilot modules at its 300,000-sq-ft factory in Dubai Industrial City – which has the capacity to produce 1,900 units per year. The units could be used for a residential or a […] August 1, 2023
Construction Aldar Education expands into Bahrain and Dubai Aldar Properties has increased investment in its education business, with over AED350 million ($95 million) added to the initial AED1 billion commitment announced last year, it said on Monday. A filing to the Abu Dhabi Stock Exchange notes that the company is expanding into Dubai and Bahrain, as well as adding a new acquisition in […] July 31, 2023
Infrastructure Israel plans to link $27bn rail project to Saudi Arabia Israel will build a 100 billion shekel ($27 billion) rail expansion that will connect its outlying areas to metropolitan Tel Aviv and, in the future, could provide overland links to Saudi Arabia, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said. The announcement followed a trip by top US officials to Saudi Arabia last week to advance a possible […] July 31, 2023
Exclusive Real Estate Dubai businessman ready to take on The World A Dubai businessman is in talks to try and launch a project on The World, as the emirate’s record-breaking real estate market revives interest in the manmade island development. The World was launched in 2003 by state-owned master developer Nakheel. Made up of 300 small manmade islands in the shape of the map of the […] July 31, 2023
Infrastructure Carbon targets deter Middle East power project developers Developers are becoming increasingly wary of bidding for long-term infrastructure deals in the Middle East because the terms go beyond their own carbon neutral targets. According to industry sources they are particularly struggling to be able to work on projects involving thermal power plants without carbon capture and storage (CCS) because the terms can stretch […] July 27, 2023
