United Engineering Construction Wins AED160 million Ibn Battuta Hotel Contract

Dubai developer Nakheel has awarded a contract worth nearly AED160 million for the construction of its new, 372-room hotel at Ibn Battuta Mall to UAE-based United Engineering Construction LLC (UNEC).

The hotel will form part of Nakheel’s 28,000 square metre expansion of the Ibn Battuta mall complex. 

The announcement comes less than three weeks after Nakheel signed a management agreement with UK-based Premier Inn to run the hotel, which will be directly linked to the Dubai Metro and Ibn Battuta Mall.  Premier Inn at Ibn Battuta, scheduled to open in 2016, will have a restaurant, Costa coffee shop, swimming pool and gym.

Ibn Battuta, the world’s largest themed shopping mall, already has 270 shops, 50 restaurants and a 21-screen cinema. The expansion will add 150 shops to the complex.

Nakheel is planning nine hotels across Dubai over the next five years. In April, the developer confirmed that Accor will manage its 250-room hotel at Dragon Mart, due to open this year, and in February, Nakheel launched more than 500 luxury residences at The Palm Tower, its 50-storey, five star hotel and residential complex on Palm Jumeirah. Hotels are also planned for Deira Islands and International City.

UNEC is also the appointed contractor for the new retail mall at Nakheel’s Dragon Mart extension.  The 177,000 sqm extension – comprising a mall, hotel and multi-storey car park – will double the size of the existing complex, bringing the total size of Dragon Mart to 335,000 sqm.