Two events of great significance unfolded in Abu Dhabi in June. First, a major property developer put up hundreds of villas for sale on the market, marking the first time ever that freehold land was offered for sale in the emirate.

The second was even more astonishing: the villas – all 363 of them – were snapped up by land-hungry investors in less than an hour. And this despite the fact the foreigners had to sit out on the investment opportunity, which was limited to Emiratis alone!
What this really means is that Abu Dhabi, by all accounts, has entered the realty race with a market that’s hotter than July and raring to match the explosive growth currently being witnessed in neighbouring Dubai.
For the construction industry, the tidings could not be more joyous. Abu Dhabi’s infrastructure is already well developed as is its hydrocarbons indsutry, and the billions and billions of dollars expected to be pumped into the property market is likely keep men and machinery busy, and the contractors’ cash registers ticking  - over the next few years.
Thus, a robust economy backed by high investor confidence, surging demand - which has created near 100 per cent occupancy of apartments and offices – and prospects of a new freehold law anticipated to be passed this year are creating a buzz in the construction market.
In a bid to propel the emirate’s real estate investment drive further, a joint-stock company Aldar Properties was created last year, which has already launched a string of billion-dollar projects – notably the $15 billion Al Raha Beach City (see page 40). It was Aldar that launched the first villas on a freehold basis within the proposed Al Raha City and its chairman Ahmed Al Sayegh expects the company to carry out projects worth Dh100 billion ($27.25 billion) over the next five years, once the new federal property law is passed.
Hitherto, Abu Dhabi’s focus has been on developing its infrastructure and the hydrocarbons sector.  Over the next few years, the construction sector can expect to see a dramatic increase in private sector investment in commercial and residential developments including the construction of hotels, resorts and shopping malls as the emirate gears up to emulate the explosive growth of its neighbour Dubai, albeit at a slower pace.
Abu Dhabi is moving higher up judging by the number of skyscrapers that have been announced. Leading the ranks is the proposed 255 m Stella Tower, followed by the Abu Dhabi Tower Clock, which is planned to touch the lofty heights of 200 m.  Claiming the distinction of being the emirate’s current tallest tower is the 185-m Adia Tower, which is now receiving its finishing touches (see page 48).
A number of hotels are on the drawing boards as the emirate gears to meet anticipated demand. The stunning Emirates Palace hotel, which had a soft opening earlier this year in the UAE capital, is the emirate’s stake into the seven-star hotel league. And there are several other  luxurious hotels in the offing.
“Abu Dhabi emirate is set to make a giant leap in the sectors of tourism, resort and leisure ...we are planning to build more than 10 hotels by 2010 to meet the growing inflow of three million holidaymakers by that time,” says Abdullah Khalfan Al Rumaithi, managing director of National Tourism and Hotels Authority, one of the leading hotel companies. According to him, Abu Dhabi needs to build 7,000 hotel rooms to meet growing demand.
Central to the emirate’s plans to boost tourist numbers is the expansion of its international airport.

Airport
The Abu Dhabi International Airport (ADIA)’s new terminal project, which has gone back to the drawing boards, is now being expedited through the recently-established Supervision Committee for Expansion of Abu Dhabi Airport  (Scadia). It has already awarded two construction contracts for the interim works at ADIA. The local/Belgian Six Construct Abu Dhabi is expected to complete next month the Dh100 million package for the construction of nine aircraft stands, taxiway modifications, drainage and airfield lighting while the local Al-Jaber Energy Services is also close to completing work on the estimated Dh90 million fast-track construction of the new terminal 2 and refurbishment of gate 3 on terminal 1A at the existing airport.
Ten international consultants have been invited to prequalify for the design contract on the new midfield passenger terminal, which is part of an estimated Dh21 billion ($6.8 billion) redevelopment of the airport.
The complex will be designed to handle 20 million passengers annually with 52 contact gates and it will feature luxurious passenger lounges and spacious public areas, expanded dining and duty-free offerings, the latest passenger and baggage processing technology as well as a new in-transit hotel and a new110-m-high air traffic control tower.
The airport master plan completed by SOM also includes a second 4,100 m runway spaced 2,000 m from the existing runway, expanded cargo terminals with international free trade zones, among other facilities.
Contractors have been invited to bid for the rough grading package for the new runway, which has been fast-tracked to ensure completion by 2007, when Etihad Airways receives delivery of its first Airbus A380s. Tenders have also been invited for the airfield lighting and control system. Halcrow is the consultant.
The expansion will be located adjacent and to the north of the existing airport and double the airport’s existing size to 3,400 hectares. Construction is to be carried out in two phases, with the first phase comprising the terminal due to be completed in 2010.
Supported by its programme manager, Parsons International and a team of consultants, Scadia will lead all phases of the airport development.
The ultimate development plans for ADIA will allow it to grow from its current level of approximately 5 million passengers per year to 50 million. Designs will also see cargo capacity increase with initial plans calling for 800,000 to 1 million tonnes a year (tpy) at two cargo terminals, one for Etihad Airways and the second for other users.
 As part of the redevelopment, a 12 km circular railway line with 19 stops, will also be built linking Abu Dhabi with the expanded airport and free trade zones proposed within the airport expansion project.
 
Power
Abu Dhabi, which launched the region’s first independent power and water project (IWPP), is floating a $1.1 billion, newly-formed utilities firm, thus privatising part of the emirate’s utilities holdings. Abu Dhabi National Power Company, known as Taqa, will issue an initial public offering and a private placement as the government frees up to 49 per cent of the firm to go into private hands. The firm’s main assets are the government’s stakes in five state-owned utilityfirms, four of which are independent water and power joint ventures with foreign firms.  The state utilities provider Abu Dhabi Water and Electricity Authority (Adwea) will oversee Taqa, which may have branches in and outside the UAE.
In January, Adwea awarded the region’s biggest privatisation project in the water and electricity sector to a four-company consortium. Led by Marubeni of Japan, the consortium has agreed to develop the Dh11 billion Taweelah B independent water and power project – which includes Dh6.2 billion worth of existing assets, and Dh4.8 billion for the expansion.
Under the 20-year plan, the consortium will first buy the existing Taweelah B plant facilities that Adwea operates about 100 km east of Abu Dhabi. The plant has a power generation capacity of 1,000 MW and 94 million gallons per day of water. The other companies in the consortium are the US BTU Power, Malaysia’s Powertec and Japan’s JGC Corporation.
It will also build a new plant, which is scheduled to begin operations in 2008, with a capacity of almost 970 MW of electricity and 295,000 cu m of drinking water per day.  The EPC (engineering, procurement and construction) contractors for the project are Siemens for the power plant and Fisia Italy for the desalination plants.

Mosque
Work is under way on the extensive external and internal finishes on the Shaikh Zayed bin Sultan II mosque, one of the most prestigious projects in Abu Dhabi. With a total footprint area of 50,000 sq m, the complex was designed to be the third biggest mosque in the GCC after the two holy mosques of Makkah and Madinah.
The project covers a 500,000 sq m site between the Mussafah and Abu Dhabi International Airport roads.  The facility has four 117-m-high minarets, 84 domes and a main prayer hall large enough to accommodate 8,000 worshippers. 
The project, which has suffered a number of setbacks, is now targeted for completion by early 2007 at a final cost of about $550 million.
 
Commercial & residential projects
Abu Dhabi government has signed a contract with a consortium of three companies to build the Reem artificial island (previously known as Abu Shaoum). The Malaysian PPM Company, Al Rayan Investment Company (Al Ain) and the National Real Estate company (Abu Dhabi) will set up the Dh35 billion multi-phase island project, which will include the 5 sq m Emirates Pearl resort.
Initial work on the project, to begin this year, includes building a bridge to connect the new island with the city of Abu Dhabi, as well as building hotels, hospitals, schools, a university, a holiday resort, and residential neighborhoods.
In addition, Reem Investments has announced plans to invest Dh20 billion in a development covering 25 per cent (1.8 million sq m) of Reem Island.  The development  will include residential buildings and villas, as well as retail and office facilities, schools, hospitals and other amenities.  The island project is expected to house some 80,000 people. 
Abu Dhabi is also looking at developing Saadiyat Island. Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority has received bids from international consultants for the engineering consultancy contract for the overall infrastructure works on the development.  US-based Gensler Associates prepared the masterplan.
Another striking project on the horizon is the $2 billion car-themed resort, AutoPolis, which is expected to be completed in six years. The 53-hectare floating auto complex, which will boast the region’s largest automobile trading centre, involves developing of a 2 km-long and 0.6 km wide offshore area into a bustling commercial and entertainment district with luxurious auto showrooms, a vintage car museum, information and shopping centres, a 210,000 sq m convention centre, residential villas, a 45 to 50-storey international hotel, a specialist auto trade centre, an entertainment centre, a marina club and a learning academy.  The project – being developed with the help of Singapore-based Surbana International Consultants - takes the form of a man-made island shaped like the letters A and D – from the initials of Abu Dhabi – which are designed to be visible from space.
Construction work is expected to begin next year on the new 255-m Stellar Tower, which is to be built as a tribute to the late Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan. The London-based architects Make designed the building, which is to take shape on Ittihad Square and will house shops, offices, a restaurant and a 300-bed hotel. Recently-released designs for the project are reported to be currently under review.
The Abu Dhabi Corniche continues to be a major focus of growth. Among the largerprojects under way in the area is a six-tower complex, known as the Khalidiyah development. The complex includes residential towers and retail units and is expected to be completed by the year-end.  Turner Construction is the project manager, Bainona is the consultant while Civilco is the main contractor.
Other major projects under construction in the emirate includes the Dh750 million Capital Plaza and the Al Kheeli commercial and residential complex being developed in Sas Al Nakhl. The Capital Plaza entails the construction of five 33 to 45-storey towers.  The local/Lebanese Arabian Construction Company (ACC) is carrying out the piling package; the design consultant is US-based Smallwood, Reynolds, Stewart, Stewart & Associates while Real Estate Investment & Services Company (Reisco) is the client.  The Al Kheeli complex, which is expected to be ready by March 2007, includes four 12-storey residential towers and a shopping complex that will host a cinema and an ice skating rink.
Strikingly modern shopping malls are changing the retail face of Abu Dhabi from the old suq-driven environment  - a prime example being the redevelopment of the Central Market (see page 40).
New malls with sizeable investments are taking shape while existing malls are undergoing expansion to meet the demand. At least five new malls including the Dh200 million Khalidiyah Mall are in various stages of development. Abu Dhabi Mall, which had a net lettable area of 64,000 sq m, has just added  a further 17,000 sq m of space while the upscale Marina Mall is undergoing a huge expansion (see page 46).

Hotels & resorts
The highly luxurious Emirates Palace hotel, managed by the German hotel chain Kempinski Hotels & Resorts, is expected to be officially opened next month.  Designed to reflect the Arabian culture, the hotel is built in the style of a palace with a facade representing the different nuances of the Arabian Desert. It has a total of 390 hotel rooms and suites and a mega conference centre.
Work is under way on the Fairmont Abu Dhabi Resort and Villas, which is due to open near the Marina Mall by early 2007. The ambitious project will feature a network of seawater canals, 50 villas and a 2,000-m Willow Stream spa.
The 40 per cent Abu Dhabi-government-owned National Tourism and Hotels Authority, which expects to build another 10 hotels within the next five years, has launched an expansion project on the Abu Dhabi Intercontinental Hotel, one of the emirate’s key resorts.  The Dh100 million project, expected to be completed by the end of 2006, will add 50 rooms to take the total room capacity to 380.  The project also involved construction of seven ultra-modernconference and meeting halls, which are expected to open shortly.
Among the latest entrants into the hotel sector are the 110-room Al Raha Beach Hotel and Danat Resort Jebel Dhanna, which opened recently.

Roads & railways
Abu Dhabi has opened the Dh220 million first phase of its Corniche Road project, which covers a 4.5-km stretch from Al Khaleej Al Arabi Street to Al Salama Street.
The Dh800 million Corniche project has involved reclaiming more than 700,000 sq m of land from the sea, several roads, tunnels, pedestrian underpasses and landscape projects.  When completed by the end of this year, the Corniche Road will have four lanes of traffic and nearly 3,500 new parking bays. 
Work is currently under way on the $250 million Zayed Bridge Crossing, the third bridge crossing to Abu Dhabi island which will serve as a crucial link between Abu Dhabi city and the highways to other emirates. The project initially comprised three parts: the mainland approach, which was completed last November by a local/Belgian joint venture of Al-Jaber Transport and General Contracting Establishment and Six Construct; the island approach, currently being built by Hilalco and due for completion early next year; and the main bridge, under construction by Geneva-registered Archirodon Construction in joint venture with local subcontractor Bin Hafeez.  Recently a fourth part has been added, to provide direct access to the Shaikh Zayed mosque for traffic entering Abu Dhabi across the bridge.  High-Point Rendel is consultant for the project.

Oil & gas
Dolphin Energy – which is 51 per cent owned by Abu Dhabi's state-run Mudabala group – has secured around $3.5 billion in financing from local and international banks for its gas project. The scheme, which aims to pump an initial two billion cu ft per day of natural gas from Qatar's giant North Field in the Gulf to buyers, is reported to be on track for completion next year.
Construction of the landfall facilities at Al Taweelah in Abu Dhabi where the gas from Qatar will arrive, is about to begin.
Meanwhile, Abu Dhabi, which holds the bulk of the oil wealth of the UAE, is also developing its gas reserves  which are said to be the world's fifth biggest. To exploit these reserves, a suite five integrate schemes are being undertaken including Asab II, OGD-III and the third natural gas liquids train project at Ruwais.
State-owned Abu Dhabi Gas Industries (Gasco), a subsidiary of Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc)  and sister companies, Adco (for gas gathering and reinjection), and Takreer (for condensate storage and shipping), are leading the drive to boost gas production from 5 billion cu ft per day to around 7 billion.  
Meanwhile, Abu Dhabi Oil Refining Company (Takreer) has awarded Dodsal a Dh1.47 billion engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract for the inter-refineries project (IRP).   This project is being implemented to optimise the inter-refineries operations between Abu Dhabi and Ruwais refineries and will eliminate shipment of oil products by sea. Project completion is expected by first quarter 2007.

Other projects
• The Al-Jazira football stadium is to be redeveloped on a fast track under a design-and-build contract to ensure completion by start of the inter-GCC soccer tournament in November 2006. The project calls for the reconstruction of the single-tier stands into a multi-tiered stadium to double the ground’s capacity to about 40,000 and two 17-storey residential towers. 
• Hochtief Construction has signed an agreement with Higher Corporation for Specialized Economic Zones (HCSEZ) to build the industrial and commercial infrastructure of the second phase of the Industrial City of Abu Dhabi (ICAD)
• The Department of Social Services and Commercial Buildings is to build 711 more bachelor accommodation inside and outside Abu Dhabi. The department, also known as the Shaikh Khalifa Committee, also plans to build 170 multi-storey buildings and villas, providing 3,500 to 4,000 apartments within five years.
• The  Dh230 million Khalifa Park was completed early this year.  The 500-hectare park, overlooking Al Qarm Beach Corniche on the East Ring Road, is considered one of the major tourist attractions in the Gulf. 
• Adnoc is to set up a new melamine plant at Ruwais in joint venture with the Australia-based Agrolinz Melamine International (AMI). The estimated $160 million project calls for the construction of an 80,000 tpy factory adjacent the Ruwais Fertiliser Industries (Fertil) which will provide the needed urea feedstock.