Construction has recently started a Dh8 billion ($2.17 billion) business and residential micro-city in Abu Dhabi – the Capital Centre – which will become the world’s first fully-networked exhibition and lifestyle destination, according to its developer Abu Dhabi National Exhibitions Company, a leading meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions firm in the Middle East.

Spread over 148,000 sq m, the project is the largest development on the main island of Abu Dhabi and is being developed around the new Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre (Adnec) in a move to meet the increasing demand for commercial and residential facilities being generated by the successful exhibition centre.
Situated close to Abu Dhabi International Airport, the Capital Centre will encompass the state-of-the-art Adnec, an iconic 35-storey Feature Tower, a micro-city consisting of residential, commercial and hotel accommodation, a marina and waterfront leisure zone and an existing grandstand.
On completion in early 2011, it is expected to house 23 towers, balanced mix of five-star, four-star and three-star hotels including six branded hotels, four commercial buildings, eight residential and serviced apartment complexes and five mixed-use developments. Also featured in Capital Centre will be a 2.3 km waterfront Marina Zone, a proposed monorail and the ‘Galleria’ – a shopping mall with restaurants, retail outlets, and cinemas.
The most distinctive feature of the development will be the iconic Feature Tower, which will include a 200-room five-star-plus hotel and 20,000 sq m of office and retail space. This highly striking tower will rise from the ground in an iconic, curving form.
The 23 towers that form the Micro-City will be located on land currently occupied by Abu Dhabi’s old exhibition venue, which is to be demolished soon. The first of these towers will be completed in September 2009. The last event at the old venue was staged in January this year and Adnec employees have recently vacated the building to move to new state-of-the-art offices, located in the historic grandstand that has been fully refurbished and integrated into the new Adnec.
Capital Centre will add more the 2,500 hotel rooms and around 950 apartments to Abu Dhabi. It is expected that at least 15 new restaurants will be opened as part of the development.
Three bridges will connect Capital Centre to its Marina Zone, which will be specially equipped to house super-yachts and marine exhibitions.
The zone will also encompass retail outlets, restaurants and entertainment facilities, providing investors with stylish low-rise residential offerings complete with scenic views of the canal.
The project is located off Mussafah Road and Khaleej Al Arabi Street, in Abu Dhabi’s diplomatic district, located 15 minutes from Abu Dhabi’s international airport and 45 minutes from Jebel Ali Port in Dubai.
“Capital Centre is not just one of Abu Dhabi’s most prestigious developments; it is one of the Middle East’s most significant economic development projects. The site will become a new landmark of the UAE, combining the world’s most modern exhibition centre, an iconic feature tower and striking Marina Zone all in one location,” says Simon Horgan, chief executive officer of Adnec.
“As a thriving destination, Capital Centre will have a huge economic impact on Abu Dhabi; the development will directly support business, trade and investment, in addition to stimulating events which themselves encourage the tourism and hospitality sector,” he adds.

Exhibition Centre
The exhibition centre project is being undertaken in three phases, and is expected to complete by 2009. Work on the second phase began in early May and is scheduled for completion in Autumn 2008. The Dh580 million project will see the venue double in size to become the Middle East’s largest purpose-built exhibition centre with inter-connected exhibition floor space totalling more than 55,000 sq m.
The exhibition centre’s distinctive U-shape design will be achieved by constructing five additional exhibition halls, a multi-purpose hall with seating for more than 5,000 people, 15 meeting rooms and two multi-storey car parks with space for more than 8,000 vehicles. Also included will be the completion of the visitor concourse which will grow to 18,000 sq m, making it the largest air-conditioned exhibition concourse in the world. The development will see more than 5,000 skilled workmen employed on the project in a concentrated programme of construction.
Phase two will offer 27, 000 sq m of exhibition space which includes a 8,000 sq m multipurpose hall (MPH). The exhibition halls have a clear height of 10 m, while the multi-purpose hall has a clear height of 13.5 m.
Some 103,343 cu m of concrete, 3,179 tonnes of structural steel and 2,812 piles will go into the construction of this phase. The multi-purpose hall contains state-of-the-art retractable seats which are reconfigurable and allow Adnec to cater for conferences with up to 6,000 delegates. The movable wall installations within the MPH allows for acoustic reconfigurable enclosures for optimum exhibition, auditorium and function facilities and the staging, sound and lighting facilities will allow for theatrical events. Additional facilities include a production kitchen capable of 10,000 meals per day.
Phase 1 of Adnec opened in February and the venue has since hosted 10 major international exhibitions, welcoming more than 250,000 visitors from over 100 countries. It is predicted that by 2008, Adnec will welcome more than one million visitors a year and will grow the exhibition industry in the UAE by more than 25 per cent.
Capital Centre is being developed under the patronage of Sheikh Sultan bin Tahnoon Al Nahyan, chairman of Adnec and the Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority (ADTA).
“There are some remarkable projects taking place in Abu Dhabi at the moment, a large proportion of which focus on positioning Abu Dhabi as a high-end tourist destination. Capital Centre’s focus is business tourism and commerce, as such it perfectly complements other developments and is in line with the long-term objectives of the Abu Dhabi government,” concludes Horgan.