Gulf Construction Online - Masdar City gears for major expansion

UAE Focus

Masdar City gears for major expansion

01 May 2016

Masdar City in Abu Dhabi will undergo significant expansion over the next five years, driven by its emergence as a hub for research and development (R&D) and the commercialisation of clean technologies.

Revealing the news at last month’s Cityscape exhibition in Abu Dhabi, the developer Masdar said Abu Dhabi’s Urban Planning Council (UPC) had approved detailed masterplans for the 637,000-sq-m Phase Two of the green sustainable city, which will include a research and development cluster, 2,000 apartments and a Gems school as well as another 341,000-sq-m phase which will include 1,000 homes.

Most of the new developments will be built by third-party developers with Mubadala-owned Masdar acting as a master developer.

The approval of the masterplans coincides with Masdar’s 10th anniversary and the city is targeting a Four Pearl Community Rating from Estidama for the new developments.

“Around 35 per cent of the planned built-up area will be completed over the next five years – up from five per cent today – and nearly 30 per cent has been committed to, including private homes, schools, hotels and more office space,” said Anthony Mallows, the executive director of Masdar City, adding that all space within its existing buildings, and those under construction, is fully leased.

“Masdar City’s expansion is gathering pace because today we are recognised as an innovation ecosystem – a hub for R&D, technology, human capital building, business opportunity and investment,” he noted.

Last month, Masdar also joined hands with Reportage Real Estate to break ground on its 170-unit Leonardo Residences of one-, two- and three-bedroom private apartments.