Emaar mulls more projects in India

Emaar Properties, the Dubai-based real estate company with a market capitalisation of $40 billion, is scouting for more projects in India. At present, the company's projects are spread over Andhra Pradesh and Punjab and it has also bid for a few projects in Bangalore.

Addressing the media, Nader Mohammed, executive director (operations), Emaar Properties, said, "India is a market that we are looking at big time. It is a potential area for us."

The company's Hyderabad International Convention Centre (HICC) was opened on Saturday on the occasion of Pravasi Bharatiya Divas.

The HICC was built by Cyberabad Convention Centre Pvt Ltd, a joint venture between Emaar Properties and the Andhra Pradesh Industrial Infrastructure Corporation. Built at a cost of $39 million, it offers a seating capacity of 4,000 with the flexibility to expand to 6,500 seats.

Emaar has also invested $27 million on Novotel Hyderabad, a 300-room business hotel. The hotel, to be managed by hotel group Accor, is set to open in May 2006. The ruler of Dubai is expected to officially inaugurate the centre in February this year.

This apart, the company is developing a golf course, club house and a township in Hyderabad at an investment of more than Rs 100 crore.

"The first phase of the golf course will be ready by the end of April 2006," Shravan Gupta, managing director of Emaar-MGF Land Pvt Ltd, said.

Emaar-MGF is a 50:50 joint venture between Emaar Properties and Delhi-based MGF Group. The company was initially supposed to be a 60:40 partnership but according to Gupta, the 50:50 deal was retained.

"The Punjab township and mini-cities project that involves an investment of $500 million will be launched in the next quarter. Besides, we are considering projects in Haryana and have bid for various projects in Bangalore," Gupta said.

The company expects to create 50,000 direct and indirect jobs in India in the first phase of its operations.