Rakeen hands over 281,000 sq. ft. plot to AAKAR Marjan Island LLC

The signing of the agreement between Yadvinder Singh, CEO/President, Aakar Marjan Island and Wahid Attalla, Member of the Board, Rakeen signals the commencement of the project's construction process, which will be undertaken by the equity partner, Kayi Construction, who has targeted the third quarter of 2008 to the start preliminary work on the project.

In addition, the developer has announced that it is currently holding talks with leading hotel operators for the management of the five-star property.

With a total built up area of 800,000 sq. ft., the developer's inaugural project will rise on the largest island of the Al Marjan Island development.

Designed to offer breathtaking views of the ocean, each of the well-appointed rooms, suites and apartments will incorporate state-of-the-art luxury amenities and world-class R&R services.

Targeted for completion in 2010, future tenants and visitors of the ultra-exclusive project will enjoy the advantages of the project's strategic location near the Ras Al Khaimah Airport and RAK free zone.

'The transfer of the plot for our luxury hotel and residential apartment complex marks the first step in the construction process, which will lead to the birth of a new landmark development in Ras Al Khaimah,' said Yadvinder Singh, CEO/President, Aakar Marjan Island. 'We would like to thank Rakeen for their phenomenal support for this project as evident in the handover of one of the most strategically located plots within Al Marjan Island to us. All systems are in place for the commencement of construction, and we are looking forward to hitting the target completion date we have set for this project.'

Construction of this iconic project rests in the hands of Kayi Construction, a firm with extensive experience in building large-scale developments that spans from its origins in Turkey to global locations of landmark projects, which have been constructed through its regional subsidiaries.

Established in 1991, the company has grown to emerge as one of the leading international contracting and construction firms in terms of annual turnover, profitability and investments in both domestic and foreign markets.

In recognition of its achievements, the company has been named as one of the five biggest contractors in Russia and among the top 200 international contractors according to McGraw Hill Construction's Engineering News-Record.

Kayi Construction currently maintains a 7500-strong workforce deployed in various regions and has a project portfolio currently valued at $1bn.

'Our decision to forge a strategic partnership with AAKAR Developers was driven by the uniformity in our visions, which are centred towards providing modern projects using the latest technology and architectural solutions. Our first project poses tremendous promise not only in terms of enhancing our current portfolio but also more notably to the growth of Ras Al Khaimah as a regional real estate destination. We are all keyed up to commence the construction work on this multimillion dirham project at the earliest in line with our goal to hit the delivery schedule by 2010,'

added Coskun Yilmaz, Chairman, Kayi Construction.

'The Al Marjan Island is our flagship project, which we have launched in line with the vision of transforming Ras Al Khaimah into a high-end tourism and commercial destination, and accordingly, we have been selective in approving proposals from developers,' said Wahid Attalla, Member of the Board, Rakeen. 'AAKAR has demonstrated a firm commitment towards the development of luxury projects and an understanding of how to translate large scale projects into reality, which encouraged us to give them an opportunity as one of the first developers to build within 'Al Marjan Island', and we are looking forward to being a part of the realisation of their vision.'

The luxury hotel and residential project marks AAKAR Developers' second project, following the success of its Dhs200m Canada Business Centre Tower, which is currently under construction at Business Bay in Dubai.

Backed by a deep knowledge of the real estate market, which has been gathered from extensive experience in the market, the company aims to establish a reputed name within the booming property market in the UAE.