The UAE’s leading private property developer Damac Properties is aiming to develop a substantial portfolio of overseas ?master developments?, with India likely to be a future area of growth.
Damac Holding chairman Hussain Sajwani says the company holds a sizeable land bank in Egypt and Saudi Arabia where it plans to unveil major mixed-use real estate developments.
The company has launched 79 towers at a cost of nearly USD 18 billion, covering the UAE, Qatar, Jordan, Lebanon and Saudi Arabia. Its only master development to date is the huge USD 35-40 billion Gamsha Bay project in Egypt.
“We are currently talking to a number of governments in overseas countries about building master developments,” he said.
Damac has its eye on ventures in several other untapped markets, such as India, Pakistan, Turkey and North African countries. “We’ll be looking at these markets closely in 2008, but as yet we haven’t bought any land,” Sajwani told the Gulf News.
“In India we think we can play an important role, but one of the main challenges is buying the land. It’s very difficult to secure a big piece of land in a good location for a big development — it takes time,” said Sajwani.