ABU DHABI  - Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company (Masdar) said on Wednesday it was launching a sustainable real estate investment trust (REIT) with an initial valuation of between 950 million UAE dirhams ($259 million) and 1 billion dirhams.

The "green" REIT portfolio will initially include four commercial properties at Abu Dhabi's Masdar city, the company, a subsidiary of Mubadala Investment Company, said in a statement.

It will cover more than 57 thousand square meters of net leasable area.

The first green REIT in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), it will be launched at Abu Dhabi Global Market, the statement said.

Masdar, wholly owned by the Abu Dhabi government through Mubadala, was set up to develop sustainable and clean energy. Masdar City is Masdar's $22 billion carbon-neutral "green city in the desert."

(Reporting by Dahlia Nehme, Writing by Maha El Dahan and Nafisa Eltahir; Editing by Louise Heavens and Mark Potter) ((Maha.Dahan@thomsonreuters.com; + 9712 4082101; Reuters Messaging: maha.dahan.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))