A ‘city’ for all things e-commerce in Dubai

The idea of building a free zone in Dubai dedicated to e-commerce was “first dreamt of back in 2015 due to the hyper-growth expected in the sector”, says Devere Forster. “The project design for the site began late 2017 with shoring, piling and construction getting underway in early 2019.

It was during the design phase that decisions were made to deliver the project in two phases. Phase 1 would deliver 50 per cent of the Business Cluster made up of six G+6 buildings with 82,000 square metres of leasable office space.

Phase 1 also includes 50 per cent of the Logistics Cluster, with 24,500 square metres of leasable e-fulfilment centres. There is also around 2,000 square metres of leasable space in the Social Cluster, made up of retail spaces, a food hall and a multi-purpose events hall.

“We pre-leased 30 per cent of the facilities in just two months,” says Forster. “The initial plan was to deliver the Logistics Cluster mid-2023, but we have brought that forward to the fourth quarter of 2022. And the original plan was to deliver final building in 2029-30, but we now plan to complete the Business Cluster early 2028.”