Dar Al Arkan’s global unit plans to launch projects worth $2.5bn within three years

▶ London-listed subsidiary teams up with partners such as Trump Organisation to drive growth strategy

Dar Global, a subsidiary of Saudi Arabia’s biggest developer Dar Al Arkan, has close to $2.5 billion worth of projects planned in the next two to three years as part of its global expansion plans.

The company is planning new projects with the Trump Organisation and other partners as part of its growth strategy, chief executive Ziad El Chaar told The National in an interview.

The projects will be designed for “the international market, for international buyers, projects that we can take to our big database of international buyers, to our 4,000 brokers across the globe. They will be mainly in the form of second homes or vacation homes”, he said.

Dar Global mainly plans to launch projects in markets where it is present, with future expansion planned in Morocco, Greece and the Maldives.

The company was established in 2017 to manage Dar Al Arkan’s international assets.

It has projects worth $5 billion under development in the UAE, Oman, Qatar, Spain, Bosnia and the UK.

Last month, Dar Global raised $72 million from its listing on the London Stock Exchange.

The company currently has 11 projects in six countries.

The new projects will be funded through a mix of debt, equity and proceeds from offplan sales, Mr El Chaar said. “The first form of funding is the equity of the company. Although we are a company which is young, we are also supported by our mother company Dar Al Arkan in Saudi [Arabia] for any potential funding needs,” he said.

“The second thing is we rely on our relationships with local and international banks. And the third form of funding is usually collection for customers.”

Dar Global also aims to raise money through the issuance of a bond or sukuk.

Rising interest rates to curb inflation globally have not affected sales so far but funding is becoming more expensive, Mr El Chaar said.

“You need to plan properly [for] the selection of your projects, as funding is twice as expensive as it was last year.”

The company has teamed up with the Trump Organisation to develop a $4 billion complex that will include residential villas, a hotel and a golf course in Muscat.

The Trump Resort will be located at Aida, a 100m-high hilltop development by the sea. Oman Tourism Development Company is also involved in the project.

Dar Global will continue to look for opportunities to join forces with the Trump Organisation and other global brands, Mr El Chaar said.

“Within all the partners that we have, be it Trump, be it Pagani, be it Ellie Saab or Missoni … during our expansion we always try to expand with them because they believed in us, they worked with us in the existing projects,” he said.

“So, every time we expand into a new project or a new city, we always try to bring our existing partners with us.

“You can expect more projects with all our branding partners, including Trump.”

Last year, the company also unveiled the first branded residential project in Qatar, with interiors by Elie Saab.

It is currently building three residential projects in Dubai – Dar Al Arkan Pagani Tower near Dubai Canal, Urban Oasis by Missoni and W Residences in Downtown Dubai.

“We had very good success in the launch of these three projects,” Mr El Chaar said.

The company is also planning to launch another project in Dubai very soon, he said. Property transactions in Dubai and Abu Dhabi surged last year amid higher demand.

The performance of the Dubai property market last year was described as “exceptional” by Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed, Crown Prince of Dubai, as the value of deals reached a new high of Dh528 billion ($143.7 billion).

The value of transactions was up 76.5 per cent annually while the number of transactions, at 122,658, rose 44.7 per cent.

The fundamentals of the UAE property market remain very strong, Mr El Chaar said. People are moving to the UAE because they are convinced of the viability of the country, its security and connectivity, he said.

“People who are buying these days are not the same speculators that we used to see in 2009. These are people coming and buying and many of them are end users,” Mr El Chaar said.

Dar Global has projects worth $5 billion under development in the UAE, Oman, Qatar, Spain, Bosnia and the UK