Dh4.8b spent on Dubai Parks & Resorts

Construction at the Dubai Parks and Resorts, the region's first integrated theme park resort remains on track, and the mega tourist project is now less than 12 months away from the official opening as total spending on the project reaches Dh4.8 billion.
Raed Al Nuami, CEO of Dubai Parks and Resort, said the project has reached a critical milestone with construction of the individual parks progressing rapidly, you can now truly begin to appreciate the size and diversity of offerings at our resort.
"Our project structure works is 73 per cent complete as at the end of third quarter, up from 57 per cent in the second quarter. We have neared completion of design and procurement and our ride engineering and manufacturing is progressing as planned with 63 percent now complete," he added.
"The opportunity for Dubai Parks and Resorts is very clear. Arrivals into Dubai International Airport increased by 12.4 per cent for the first eight months of 2015 and we are pleased to be able to support Dubai's Tourism Vision of attracting 20 million visitors to the Emirate by 2020," Al Nuami said in a Press release.
Located within four hours flight time of three billion people, Dubai Parks and Resort's is a global theme park destination with a diverse entertainment offering catering for visitors of all ages and backgrounds and we are perfectly positioned to benefit from the country's growing population and increasing numbers of inbound tourists.
"Cumulative spend reached Dh4.8 billion at the end of this quarter and we look forward to opening the gates to the public in just under 12 months' time. We now have over 11,000 workers on site and 34 contractors working to bring the region's largest theme park destination to life," Al Nuami said in a statement.
He said project structure works is 73 per cent complete as at the end of third quarter, up from 57 per cent in the second quarter. "We have neared completion of design and procurement and our ride engineering and manufacturing is progressing as planned with 63 per cent now complete. In fact, earlier in October we announced the installation of the resorts first roller coaster at Legoland Dubai. The Dragon is Legoland's largest ride, standing at 16 metres tall and reaching speeds of 60kph," said Al Nuami. Resort-wide roads and underground utilities are 86 per cent complete and our substation and district cooling elements are almost complete. Dubai's Roads & Transport Authority last quarter awarded the contract for access roads including the construction of multi-lane bridges delivering visitors effortlessly to the resort from Dubai and Abu Dhabi with completion expected in August next year.
"We are particularly pleased about the leasing progress at Riverland Dubai as we have now secured 12 lease proposals, accounting for 19 per cent of total available leasing space," he said.
Al Nuami said projected revenue in the first full year of operation is estimated at Dh2.4 billion with over 5,000 jobs generated across the sector. "Construction this quarter was according to our schedule. Our total assets stood at Dh7.6 billion as at the end of third quarter. The cumulative project expenditure including land acquired amounted to Dh4.8 billion, an increase from Dh3.8 billion as at the end of the previous quarter, and we are on track to achieve our targets for the year," he said.
- issacjohn@khaleejtimes.com