Al Waha Villas to be handed over by Q2

Dubai Properties yesterday said that it is committed to the projects announced by the developer. A senior official told Emirates Business that the finances for most of the ongoing construction work has been secured.

Speaking during a media visit to Al Waha Villas and the 558 Community Development, Ambat G Raghunath, Director, Project Management at Dubai Properties said: "We are committed to the projects, which we have in the market and completing our current commitments."

The developer also said it in the process of renegotiating several contracts. "There is a benefit today as construction costs have reduced," he added.

Meanwhile, construction work on the Dh735 million Al Waha Villas and the 558 Community Development is complete and will be handed over by the second quarter of 2009. Al Waha Villas, the freehold Mediterranean-style residential development comprises 260 villas and townhouses.

"The overall construction cost of the project was about Dh300m," said Raghunath.

The developer has also awarded the landscaping contract for Dh9m, he said. The 558 community at Dubailand is an exclusive gated residential community with 414 villas and 144 apartments.

"Infrastructure facilities such as roads, sewerage, stormwater drains, telecom infrastructure and STP stands completed and are currently under testing and commissioning stages," said Raghunath. Wade Adams was awarded the contract for infrastructure within the development.

"Work on the project started two years ago in the middle of the desert. It was a bit challenging," said Esham Ahmed, Project Engineer with Al Habtoor Engineering, one of the contractors on the project.

"During the construction period in 2007 and 2008, the prices were really high. Steel prices shot up and there was a scarcity of materials. But today the situation is totally different. Prices have dropped and materials are easily available," he added.

Any escalation is calculated by the contractors following the completion of the project and only then submitted to the developers, he said. "From the time the project was tendered to its completion, the cost had increased by almost 25 to 30 per cent," said Ahmed.

Dubai Properties said it plans to lease units at the the 558 Community Development. Salwan Property Management, member of Dubai Properties Group, will provide facilities management services to the residential communities.

Among its major projects, the Dubai Properties portfolio includes the Dh110bn Business Bay development, Dh50bn Culture Village, the Dh8bn The Villa project, the Dh55bn Mudon project at Dubailand and the Dh6bn Bay Square.

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