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Outsiders may have called him mad, but the boss of Dubai's Emaar Properties today declared there was logic behind his decision to press ahead with building the world's biggest skyscraper in the troubled emirate.
Speaking at today's formal opening of the Burj Dubai, which is more than 200 storeys high, Mohamed Alabbar said: “We build for years to come. Crises come and go.”
The Burj opened just weeks after Abu Dhabi was pressurised into pumping $10 billion (£6.1 billion) into its big-spending neighbour to stave off economic catastrophe. Dubai announced in November that it would seek a debt standstill for one of its biggest companies, Dubai World, leading to fears that the whole state could be heading for a default on international debts.
Alabbar declared that the Burj cost $1.5 billion to build but 90 per cent of it was already sold, proving it made sound business sense.
However, he seemed to acknowledge much of the decision to press on with the development was made by hearts rather than heads.
“We must have hope and optimism,” he said. “You have to ask why we are building all this? To bring quality of life and a smile to people and I think we should continue to do that. Dubai is where our life is. We have beautiful, long-term plans for development in Dubai.”
Emaar is the Arab world's biggest stock market-quoted developer and had been in talks to merge with some of troubled Dubai Holding's property units until it pulled out following the crisis.
Today Alabbar said there were also no plans to merge with Nakheel, the debt-laden developer of Dubai's palm tree-shaped islands which has debts running to more than $20 billion.
