DIP sees 33% surge in warehouses’ lease area

Dubai / WAM

Dubai Investments Park (DIP) a wholly-owned subsidiary of Dubai Investments, has issued its performance report for 2016, showing an increase in the number of tenants and sub-tenants, with over 100 new companies either leasing or sub-leasing premises in the 2,300-hectare business park.
Similarly, the total area leased by the existing companies also increased by 33 percent, from approximately 6.5 million square feet to 9 million square feet, particularly in warehouse storage space.
The total number of companies within DIP is now over 4,600, covering the entire spectrum of industries from medium to light industrial units in aluminium, steel manufacturing, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, textiles, plastics, oil and gas, construction, building materials and contracting sectors. During 2016, DIP also witnessed a surge in subleasing of labour and accommodation rooms from 16,000 to 21,000 rooms. The increased capacity will help accommodate 84,000 labourers compared to 68,000 labourers earlier.
Reflecting its growing pre-eminence and surging demand, DIP has also announced the opening of a new 114-room 4-star Fortune Park boutique hotel to cater to business and leisure travellers. The new hotel is part of the plans to open eight new hotels and serviced apartments in the next three to four years in DIP. To be built by individual investors, the hotels and apartments will be of various star categories.
The new hotels will perfectly complement the growth of DIP as a city-within-a-city. It will also provide a major boost to the hospitality sector as Dubai expects to attract as many as 25 million visitors during Expo 2020 Dubai, including 17.5 million overseas tourists. The emirate will require an additional 45,000 hotel rooms to match the rising demand by 2020 and an investment of nearly US$7.1 billion is expected in hotel
projects.
Omar Al Mesmar, General Manager of DIP, said, “In the last 17 years, Dubai Investments Park has grown from a unique concept on paper to a successful mixed-use project. DIP is the torchbearer in the development of business parks in the entire region, creating world-class facilities and attracting industries from across the globe over the years, which goes in line with the Dubai Industrial Strategy. DIP’s proximity to Expo 2020 site and Dubai South makes it the preferred destination for both investors and end-users. This is also leading to increasing demand for projects to develop hotels, serviced apartments within DIP.”
“The total value of investments made by DIP tenants towards their facilities and factories over the years is approximately AED50 billion,” he added.
Plans are also afoot to open the new British Columbia Canadian School, BCCS, within DIP by September 2017. The new school, the sixth within DIP, is being constructed at a total investment of AED88 million, on a 25,000 square metre plot.