Aldar to launch large Dubai villa project near Silicon Oasis

Summary

• Aldar will launch a villa and townhouse community near Dubai Silicon Oasis before year-end.
• It is the developer's fourth Dubai project and a new venture with Dubai Holding.
• The launch lands after Dubai home sales fell 47 per cent year-on-year in the third quarter.

The latest

A large villa and townhouse community near Dubai Silicon Oasis will be launched by Aldar before the end of this year, chief executive of Aldar Development Jonathan Emery told The National in London. The project, built with Dubai Holding, sits above the planned Blue Line extension. It becomes the Abu Dhabi developer's fourth Dubai scheme.

Details

• The project: Emery said the community will consist of villas and townhouses near Dubai Silicon Oasis, positioned above the Blue Line metro extension, and described it as another partnership with Dubai Holding. Aldar has not disclosed the development's value or its number of units.
• Dubai footprint: It will be the fourth Dubai project for Aldar, Abu Dhabi's biggest listed developer, after Haven, Athlon and The Wilds. The company will hand over its first homes in the emirate next year at Haven, near Dubailand.
• The Dubai Holding venture: The two companies expanded a joint venture first announced in 2023 by adding two Dubai plots in February, together targeting almost 14,000 homes with a combined gross development value above Dh38 billion, according to The National. The first plot covers four million square metres along the eastern growth corridor opposite Nad Al Sheba; the second, on Palm Jebel Ali, is planned as ultra-luxury waterfront.
• Handovers: Aldar will deliver more than 3,000 units this year, the largest volume since the company's launch, rising to 4,500 next year, Emery said. Projects due this year include the Sustainable City on Yas Island, and the Grove and Louvre Abu Dhabi residences on Saadiyat Island.
• The market backdrop: Dubai recorded home sales worth Dh72.6 billion, or $19.7 billion, in the three months to the end of September, down 47 per cent on the same period last year, according to Cavendish Maxwell. Transaction numbers fell 38 per cent to 34,000.
• Buyer caution: The National reported that buyers have turned cautious because of regional uncertainty driven by the Iran war. Emery said the international side of the market had slowed, with people taking their time, but argued the customers are still there for the right product and that Aldar's launches had performed well.
• The Arada deal: In September, Aldar and Sharjah-based Arada announced housing projects on Yas Island and at Seih Sdeirah in Abu Dhabi worth about Dh15 billion, combining a master plan joint venture on the Abu Dhabi-Dubai border with Arada's purchase of three residential plots on Yas Island.
• Partnership strategy: Emery said Aldar will keep seeking tie-ups with established developers, on the reasoning that the right partner brings its own customer following and widens the offer available to both sides. He did not name any developer Aldar is currently in talks with.

Background

Aldar is Abu Dhabi's largest listed developer and has pushed into Dubai over recent years through Haven, Athlon and The Wilds, largely alongside Dubai Holding. It reported strong second-quarter results this year.

Between the lines

The timing is the story. Aldar is adding supply into a quarter when Dubai sales values fell 47 per cent and volumes 38 per cent, and Emery's framing separates a softer international buyer from domestic demand he says is intact. The Dubai Holding and Arada structures spread capital and customer risk across partners rather than concentrating it on Aldar's balance sheet.

What's next

Watch for the formal launch and pricing of the Silicon Oasis community before year-end, the first Haven handovers in Dubai next year, and fourth-quarter Dubai transaction data to show whether the third-quarter slowdown extended.

Source: The National, Cavendish Maxwell