UAE’s Arabtec denies $40bn Egypt housing contract scaled back
Dubai-listed builder says there is ‘no progress’ on deal to build a million homes
Arabtec has denied a media report saying that the company would only develop the first phase of a massive housing project in Egypt.
The Dubai-listed builder added that there had been no progress in the deal to build a million homes, which was valued at $40 billion when first announced last year.
Arabtec has been seeking to finalise the deal, originally struck with the Egyptian army, amid several delays and stumbling blocks.
“There is no progress regarding the housing project in Egypt and therefore the company denies the news referred to above,” Arabtec said in a statement to the Dubai Financial Market. The news apparently centred on claims the company would only build phase one of the project, although Arabtec did not specifically identify the report it was referring to.
The entire project will cost around $35.8 million (280 billion Egyptian pounds) according to Egyptian officials, a lower dollar sum than originally announced, with the first phase said to involve the construction of 100,000 homes.
