Bahaa Hariri to Invest Up to $10 Billion in Real Estate Project in Aqaba

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08 April 2006
Beirut (APD) - Multibillionaire Bahaa Hariri, the son of slain Lebanese Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri announced on Friday his intention to invest between $7 and $10 billion for the construction of a large scale city in the Aqaba Special Economic Zone (ASEZ) in southern Jordan on the Red Sea coast, the Dubai-based al-Bayan daily reported Saturday.


The project is considered the largest urban regeneration undertaking in Jordan, the daily said.


The city will be built on an area of more than 10 million square meters. It will include residential complexes, hotels, entertainment spots, industrial areas, shopping centers and artificial lakes.


Bahaa Hariri is due to sign a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on Saturday with Nader Dahabi, chief commissioner of ASEZA concerning the project.


Hariri chairs the board of directors of the Amman-based real estate firm Abdali Investment and DevelopmentAbdali Investment and DevelopmentAbdali Investment and Development
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which is developing the Abdali project in Amman at a total cost of $1.2 billion.


Saaddeen the brother of Bahaa Hariri is chairman of Saraya JordanSaraya JordanSaraya Jordan
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another real estate firm owned by the Hariris in Jordan.


Three months earlier, Saraya JordanSaraya JordanSaraya Jordan
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launched a $600 million tourism project in Aqaba that includes a beachfront city around a man-made lagoon, spanning about 610,000 square meters.


Aqaba has so far lured real estate investments worth $3.5 billion since its inception in 2003.


According to Forbes Magazine's 20th annual list of the world's billionaires, both Bahaa and Saad Hariri, ranked 158th out of 793 billionaires, with a fortune estimated at 4.1 billion each.


Abdali Investment and DevelopmentAbdali Investment and DevelopmentAbdali Investment and Development
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was established in 2004, it is 50% owned by Jordan Oger and 50% by Jordan's National Resources Investment and Development CorporationNational Resources Investment and Development CorporationNational Resources Investment and Development Corporation
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By Shikrallah Nakhoul, APD Staff Writer in Beirut

© APD (Arab Press Digest) 2006