Arabtec wins contracts in Abu Dhabi and Egypt

The company is expanding its operations out of Dubai.

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Arabtec Construction, the UAE building company, said received a letter of award for two projects worth a combined AED356 million ($97 million).

In Abu Dhabi the company signed an AED219 million contract build the underground car park at the headquarters of Abu Dhabi National Oil Company, also known as ADNOC.

The carpark will contain three levels underground over a space of 22,741m², a built-up area of 65,340m² and around 1,575 parking spaces, according to the company in a statement. The project is situated underneath the public park near the ADNOC headquarters close to the Corniche, and will take two years to complete.

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Meanwhile, Arabtec Egypt for Construction was given a similar letter from Emaar Misr for Development - subsidiary of property developer Emaar Properties – for a AED137 million contract to build 74 residential villas and 30 town houses as part of the Al Marassi project at Sidi Abdul Rahman on the country’s north coast.

Arabtec said it is embarking on an aggressive expansion plan across the Middle East, with Saudi Arabia a key focus, along with Syria and Egypt. “At Arabtec we will continue to focus on Abu Dhabi, as there are still a lot of projects there,” said CEO Thomas Barry at the ConstructionWeek conference in Abu Dhabi.

"The Egypt and Syrian markets will also be important for us. There are some big projects in Damascus. In Egypt they tend to carry out some large projects, so those will be big targets for us as well,” he said, adding that he was upbeat about Qatar.

The contract wins follow a similar brace of letters for two projects in the UAE. The company is to provide enabling, structural and MEP work as well as fit-out and landscaping for two residential towers in Abu Dhabi and a staff accommodation in Fujairah, and will also design and build staff accommodation in Ishwais – two deals worth a combined AED623 million.

Parent company Arabtec Holding yesterday confirmed its intention to raise money through the issuance of almost four million shares and five-year convertible bonds, subject to shareholder agreement

It aims to issue 398,666,667 shares to existing equity holders to the value of AED 1, so the bearer of each three shares receives an additional share. The five-year bonds will raise US $150 million.