A: Assets: Abu Dhabi is one of the wealthiest cities in the world. Its foreign and domestic assets are estimated at USD 17million per capita and it is anticipated to generate USD 67,700 per capita income in 2007. The emirate has also attracted more then USD 4 billion in inward investment in the last year.

B: Business and Economy: Abu Dhabi has a strong economic base underpinned by its vast oil reserves. The emirate´s economy is currently experiencing phenomenal growth and extending and diversifying its business interests though the establishment of specialised economic zones. A number of large international organisations such as Laing O´Rourke, Boeing, Formula One are establishing joint ventures here, opening regional offices and moving significant numbers of staff to the emirate.

C: Culture: The preservation of the heritage and culture of the UAE is central to the Government of Abu Dhabi´s expansion plans. Their long term vision and goal is: “to develop innovative and distinctive projects that will work in harmony with our landscape, embrace our culture and respect our environment in order to create a truly world class destination.”

At the same time they are establishing a cultural district on Saadiyat Island which will bring together the very best of international art and culture. This district will be home to the first Louvre Museum outside Paris and the largest Guggenheim Museum which at 30,000 square metres will be the largest of its outposts. Both projects are designed by renowned international architects Jean Nouvel and Frank Gehry, adding world class architectural design to the list of attractions within the city.

D: Development Projects: Abu Dhabi has already announced an estimated USD 270 billion in development projects to create much needed additional residential and commercial space for the rapidly growing city. Analysts have predicted that the Abu Dhabi property market will overtake others in the region and that demand for residential and commercial property will continue to rise.

E: Energy: Abu Dhabi benefits from an abundance of energy resources, owning vast hydrocarbon wealth accounting for 95 per cent of the country´s oil reserves and 92 per cent of its gas. The city has recently announced plans for the development of alternative energy through the Masdar Zone Development – a unique, integrated ‘Green Community’ hosting international tenants who will invest, develop and commercialise advanced energy technologies.

F: Federal Capital: Abu Dhabi is the federal capital of the United Arab Emirates and the countries cultural, political and economic heart. It has all the ingredients to become a truly multi cultural, vibrant modern capital city to rival others around the world. Located midway between East and West it is an important, commercial and trading hub which benefits from political stability and a string economy.

G: Growth: The emirate has one of the fastest growing economies in the world it generates 60 per cent of the GDP of the United Arab Emirates. Abu Dhabi´s GDP is expected to rise by 8.2 per cent in 2007 to USD159 million.

H: Hotels & Tourism: The Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority (ADTA) was established in 2004 and has ambitious plans to increase visitor numbers from 1 million to 3 million by 2015.

One of the most prestigious hotels in the world Emirates Palace opened in Abu Dhabi in 2004. Set within 100 acres of landscaped gardens and built in the style of a majestically ornate oriental palace, it houses the largest conference facilities in the region.

The worlds fasting growing airline, Etihad Airways, is the national carrier of the UAE and is based in Abu Dhabi. In its first 30 months of operation it established 30 routes and plans to be flying in visitors from over 70 international destinations by 2010.

I: Investment Areas: These are the areas designated by the Abu Dhabi Government as places where foreign nationals can invest in property. Currently there are two specified investment areas with others expected to follow:

Reem Island – a 633 hectare natural island is home to projects from three master developers, Sorouh Real Estate, Tamouh Investment and Reem Investments.

• Shams Abu Dhabi – a mixed use community from Sorouh Real Estate, occupying 20 per cent of the island and including iconic developments such as Sky Tower, The Gate and Central Park scheduled to complete in 2011.
• Najmat Abu Dhabi– under development by Reem Investments the project is anchored by three marinas. Bay Centre – the commercial heart, Residential – the community district and Resort – the entertainment hub, all linked by a central canal.
• City of Lights – Tamouh Investments 101 acre commercial and residential development with waterfront promenades and green landscaped plazas.
• Marina Square - also under development by Tamouh Investments, this project offers a number of residential towers, a commercial centre and 5 star hotel situated around a natural marina on Reem Island.

Al Raha Beach – 500 hectares of waterfront land which will be developed by master Developer Aldar Properties to create 11 distinct precincts offering a mix of residential commercial, retail, hotels, entertainment, parkland and community facilities.

J: Joint Ventures: Abu Dhabi is attracting significant foreign players to invest in JV´s within the emirate. Last month Boeing signed an agreement to help develop aerospace manufacturing and research facilities in the emirate.

Meanwhile, two major Singapore based property developers have recently announced joint real estate ventures in Abu Dhabi. Keppel Land Limited have signed a heads of agreement with Aldar Properties to develop two prime waterfront residential developments, whilst CapitaLand and Mubadala Development, are jointly investing USD 300 million in residential, retail and leisure elements, built around existing sports facilities in the city.

K: Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nayhan: the current ruler of Abu Dhabi and President of the UAE, Sheikh Khalifa succeeded his father Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nayhan in 2004. The Al Nayhan family is the ruling family of the Federation of the United Arab Emirates formed in 1971. The other emirates are Dubai, Sharjah, Ajman, Umm Al Quwain, Ras Al Khaimah and Fujairiah

L: Law: Current Abu Dhabi law provides that nationals of the United Arab Emirates and corporate bodies wholly owned by them may own land anywhere in Abu Dhabi.

Nationals of other Gulf Cooperation Council States (namely the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar and Oman) and corporate bodies wholly owned by them may own land within designated “Investment Areas” in Abu Dhabi, such as Reem Island and Al Raha Beach.

Nationals of other countries and corporate bodies owned by them may invest in property in the identified investment areas.

M: Musataha: A term found in some property contracts, a musataha is a type of ground development lease provided for under UAE law. Essentially, it is a lease of land with a right to build. The terms of the musataha can provide that the building will be owned by the musataha holder.

This concludes part of one of our A-Z Guide to Abu Dhabi. Next month we will cover N-Z. We have tried to be as comprehensive as possible and the information is current at the time of going to press. If you want any further information on the Abu Dhabi property market log on www.lljproperty.com


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