The Abu Dhabi conglomerate Al Jaber Group, which agreed a debt restructuring in June, has won a Dh2.57 billion contract to build 40 residential buildings in the emirate, it said yesterday.
State-owned Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc) awarded the contract to the family-owned group, Al Jaber said.
The project, which includes 1,920 residential units for Adnoc staff in Ruwais, located 240 kilometres from Abu Dhabi in Al Gharbia, is scheduled for completion in two years.
It will cover an area of 620,000 square metres, with a total built-up area of 521,000 sq metres. The first completed homes in Ruwais were sold to buyers in 1982 and construction of the town has occurred in four tranches. New developments were added in 2002 and 2012.
The project was initially planned as a self-contained town centred on the oil and gas industry and the Takreer Ruwais Refinery. A natural gas plant, fertilizer plant and marine terminal are also located in the city.
In January this year, Ruwais Mall opened, developed by Adnoc and operated by Line Investments and Property, a division of Lulu. At the time, one resident described the new mall as a "dream come true". Al Jaber is one of the biggest industrial groups in the UAE, employing more than 50,000 people. Like many UAE firms that were overextended with debt, it got into financial trouble in the aftermath of the financial crisis of 2008, and in 2010 it was unable to meet some repayment terms on loans.
Al Jaber, which has operations in construction, aviation and retailing, signed a debt restructuring deal with bank creditors in June. The group did not reveal the amount of debt renegotiated but bankers had previously said it was about US$4.5bn.
“We are delighted to be awarded the construction contract of the Ruwais Housing Complex Expansion Phase IV. This is the fifth project that we have executed for Adnoc. This project is a testimonial to the great relationship between Adnoc and Al Jaber Group,” said Obaid Al Marri, the chairman of Al Jaber Group.
abouyamourn@thenational.ae
Follow The National's Business section on Twitter
