Dubai’s Damac sees Saudi Arabia as growth market

Dubai-based Damac Properties is looking to expand its land bank in Saudi Arabia, and will focus on completing its hotels projects in capital city Riyadh, senior vice-president Niall McLoughlin told Argaam.

“Saudi Arabia is a growth market for us … It is something we are always targeting,” McLoughlin said on the sidelines of Cityscape Global 2017.

Damac currently had two ongoing hotels projects in Riyadh, which are on track for completion by the end of the year. The projects are in line with Damac’s strategy on brand associations, with one of the towers branded by Paramount and the other by Fendi, he added.

“Land bank is a major factor in Saudi Arabia,” McLoughlin said, adding that the company will be on a look out for more land in the Kingdom.

Other than Saudi Arabia, Damac is also looking for investment opportunities in Europe and Canada. McLoughlin said the company will focus on developed markets that have good regulations and banking structure.

Earlier this year, Damac announced and started its project Aykon London One, awarding an AED 1.14 billion construction contract to global contractor Multiplex. The project is slated to be complete by 2020.

McLoughlin said Damac is on track for it AED 7 billion sales target for this year, and could also slightly exceed the forecast. The Dubai-listed developer had AED 4 billion in sales in the first half of this year.

Write to Nadeshda Zareen at nadeshda.zareen@argaamplus.com