Dubai: Nakheel plans to be one of the largest shopping mall developers in the world by 2018, according to a spokesperson.
Nakheel is soon going to start development on 13 million square feet of new retail space across five major projects. These include Palm Mall on Palm Jumeirah, Palm Mall on Palm Deira, Ibn Battuta Mall phase II, India Mart and Great Mall Dubai.
"By 2012, Nakheel Retail Shopping Malls division will be the largest shopping mall developer, owner and manager in the Middle East. By 2018, it will be one of the largest in the world," a Nakheel spokesperson told Gulf News in an e-mail.
On top of ambitious retail plans, Nakheel is also predicting a bright future for Dubai's much-debated supply and demand issue.
Manal Shaheen, director of sales, marketing and customer service at Nakheel said demand for their properties in Dubai has risen across residential and commercial sectors with no signs of any slowdown.
"We see no signs of this demand abating-despite recent gloomy predictions from one or two analysts," Shaheen said.
"If you compare the expansive vision of Dubai to the construction capacity constraint, which is currently around 80,000 dwellings per year, and if you believe that population growth will continue to rise by six to seven per cent per annum - a conservative estimate - then by 2020, we will still not have enough residences to meet demand," Shaheen said.
Her words echo those of Nakheel chief executive Chris O'Donnell, who spoke to Gulf News in June.
O'Donnell said then that Dubai was on the "fast track" to cement its place in the Middle East as a commercial hub and tourism hub.
Nakheel also announced on Sunday that 2008 sales have tripled to date compared with the whole of 2007.
Until now, more than 6,100 Nakheel units in Dubai have been sold. Around 68 per cent of this was apartment sales, 27 per cent villa sales and five per cent land plot sales. The three developments accounting for the largest volume of sales were Badrah Manara apartments in Waterfront with 32.3 per cent of sales, the Lake District in International City with 15.2 per cent of the total sales and Al Furjan, making up 14.7 per cent of sales.
An additional 2,650 units are due to be released over 11 sales launches in the last quarter 2008.
With an estimated portfolio of $80 billion currently, Nakheel has projects including the Palm Jumeirah, The World and Dubai Waterfront.
Nakheel also has joint ventures with the Trump Organisation, French hypermarket operator Auchan and Australian property developer Mirvac.
Nakheel also has plans to develop 250 hotels in Dubai which would be a 50 per cent increase on the current number.
By Suzanne Fenton
© Gulf News 2008
