Wednesday, Nov 30, 2011
DUBAI (Zawya Dow Jones)--Dubai-based Arabtec Holding (ARTC.DFM) said Wednesday it received a letter of award to proceed with works for a 670 million Saudi riyal ($179 million) construction project in Jeddah.
"The award of this project demonstrates further the strategic importance of the Saudi market for Arabtec. This is the third major project awarded to Arabtec Saudi Arabia," said Arabtec Holding Chief Executive Officer Riad Kamal in a statement posted on the Dubai Financial Market website.
Arabtec said it expected the award to increase in value to around SAR1.5 billion, adding that negotiations were ongoing to finalize this increase. The company didn't say who the project client is and didn't provide any further details on the deal.
Arabtec shares were last trading flat at 1.45 United Arab Emirates dirhams ($0.40) on the Dubai bourse.
Like other contractors, Arabtec has been hit hard by a severe downturn in Dubai's property market where prices have slumped by more than 50% since late 2008 and many projects are on hold or cancelled. The company has begun to diversify away from dependence on contracts in Dubai and the U.A.E., entering new markets such as Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Egypt.
Previous Arabtec projects in Saudi Arabia include 46 buildings as part of the Princess Noura University project in Riyadh and the construction of 5000 villas and associated infrastructure works for a new housing project in the Eastern Province with an agreed value of SAR5 billion to be completed over a construction period of 30 months.
-By Tahani Karrar-Lewsley, Dow Jones Newswires; +9714 446-1692; Tahani.Karrar@dowjones.com
Copyright (c) 2011 Dow Jones & Co.
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
30-11-11 0655GMT
