Tecom to add over 1m sqft of commercial space in free zones

Tecom Business Parks, a subsidiary of Tecom Investments, said on Tuesday it is building four commercial developments, adding over 1 million square feet of commercial space in its business parks by end-2015.

CEO Malek Al Malek

“We are running out of space… so we are developing four new commercial buildings, worth Dh1 billion, across our business parks. The move is to address the growing demand from media, technology and education sectors,” said Malek Al Malek, Chief Executive Officer, Tecom Business Parks.

The Butterfly will be developed in the centre of Dubai Media City and Dubai Internet City. The two-office buildings will offer space of 255,000 square feet with the developer offering tailor-made office space facility as well. The project is slated for completion by end of 2015.

“It is developed in a site which is running at more than 95 per cent occupancy… the project is mainly to meet the growing demand coming from Media and Internet City, and Knowledge Village,” Malek revealed.

Construction has commenced on DuBiotech Headquarters Building, comprises two ground plus 21-storey building, having a total space of 520,000 square feet.

“The towers will mainly serve the science and energy sector. We expected completion by Q1 2015.”

In International Media Production Zone (IMPZ), Tecom Business Parks is closing in on completing the Publishing Pavilion, a 9-storey development with total area of 299,736 square feet.

“We are working for Publishing Pavilion for the past two years. We expect completion in five months from now,” Malek said.

Makateb, a development consisting of two 5-storey towers and two 7-storey towers ( total space of 267,191 square feet), is also under construction with handover expected in Q1 2015.

Asked how commercial rents have been faring in Tecom business parks compared to the other areas of Dubai, Malek said: “Our pricing is based on business requirement. But during the crisis, we repositioned our product, we divided space and we considered the tenor and commitment of the business partners.

“We have been very sensible to the industry and client requirement when it comes to pricing. Compared to other master developers, we are one of the most competitive ones.”

Occupancy, prices on rise

JLL, a global property consultancy, said recently the Dubai office market sustained its recovery as overall occupancy rates and prices increased in Q1 2014.

“With occupier demand continuing to be focused on good quality space, average rents in prime locations are expected to increase with 2014 seeing a broader based recovery with increased interest in secondary office locations given the declining choice in prime locations,” the consultancy said.

Tecom Business Parks include Dubai Internet City and Dubai Outsource Zone, together forming an ICT Cluster; Dubai Media City, Dubai Studio City and the International Media Production Zone, make up the Media Cluster; Dubai Knowledge Village and Dubai International Academic City, creating an Education cluster; and DuBiotech and Enpark, forming the Sciences Cluster.

Tecom’s business parks have 4,500 companies, which range from multinationals to small to medium enterprises and start-ups, employing 58,000 knowledge workers.

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