Deyaar 'preferred partner' for DIB's Plantation project

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Deyaar Development CompanyDeyaar Development Company said yesterday it might be the "preferred partner" for development of Plantation Equestrian & Polo Club, an equestrian-themed project in DubailandDubailand.

"Although we are not in talks with Dubai Islamic Bank [DIB]Dubai Islamic Bank [DIB], but we are preferred partners for them on this project," Markus Giebel, Chief Executive of DeyaarDeyaar, told Emirates Business.

DIBDIB recently took over the project from its previous owner Arthur Fitzwilliam. The bank owns a 41 per cent stake in DeyaarDeyaar, according to Zawya.com.

On Sunday, Dubai's Real Estate Regulatory Agency (Rera)Real Estate Regulatory Agency (Rera) stepped up action against Plantation Holdings by sending its first public notification for cancelling the developer's registration with ReraRera. Following the cancellation, DIBDIB now has full ownership of the land belonging to Plantation Holdings as part of a foreclosure process.

When contacted, a DIBDIB official said it was currently building a database of project investors and gathering information on all the contractors and consultants.

"Our primary concern as of now is to build a database in order to get all the investors, project consultants, contractors and suppliers under one roof. We had one investor contacting us from Kuwait, we had a supplier contacting us from Bahrain. So it is important to gather all the names. We will then forward the list to ReraRera which will then arrange for due action to be taken and compensation to be given to the parties concerned."

The project is not cancelled and will be built as per initial plans, the official said.

Plantation Equestrian has a construction value of about Dh13 billion and is located off Emirates Road.

ReraRera's Chief Executive Officer Marwan bin Ghalita told this newspaper that this is the first public notification to cancel a developer's registration and there would be more if developers fail to adhere to the regulations laid down by Law No 13 of Initial Property Registration.

"We have set targets for developers to register under Law No 13 and due action will be taken against those not adhering to the law.

"This is a dispute issue. Arthur Fitzwilliam registered only once with us and did not come back to complete other registration formalities. And so we have taken this step," said Ghalita.

All the investors who have bought a unit in the project are requested to go to DIBDIB within one month from the date of issue of the advertisement and follow up with the bank on the status of their investment, Ghalita said.

Plantation's main asset is a 20 million sq ft plot, equal in size to 370 soccer pitches, allocated to it for a project called the Plantation Equestrian & Polo Club that would have formed part of the planned $80bn (Dh294bn) DubailandDubailand venture. The project was to include a five-star boutique hotel complex, five polo fields, an equestrian and polo academy and more than 100 villas for sale.

By Anjana Kumar

© Emirates Business 24/7 2008