Dubai developer Damac Properties has joined forces with Al Fao General Engineering Company, a subsidiary company of the Iraqi Ministry of Housing and Construction, to set up a new venture for development of its housing projects in the country.

The agreement was reached at a high-level meeting  in Baghdad between Damac executives and the Minister of Housing and Construction Mohammad Al Darraji along with the officials of Al Fao General Engineering Company.

The joint venture agreement comes less than five weeks after Damac agreed a MoU directly with the Iraqi Ministry of Housing and Construction during Cityscape Global 2012 in Dubai, to develop a number of projects in Baghdad and the surrounding region.

“This agreement formalises our relationship with the Iraqi government and is the first step in developing projects in Iraq,” remarked Ziad El Chaar, the managing director of Damac Properties.

“The joint venture with Iraqi ministry's subsidiary company, brings together two industry experts enabling the swift development of the country,” he added.

Speaking at Cityscape Global last month, the Iraqi Minister of Housing and Construction had said that $10.4 billion worth of construction and infrastructure projects were expected to be approved next year and also added that the ministry had 65 projects worth $3 billion with 60,000 units already under construction.

Damac has a long standing relationship with the Iraqi government and already owns two plots of land in Baghdad that was previously purchased from the private sector. The company is currently working on concepts and designs for these areas from its offices in Baghdad, and will introduce them in the near future.

The Dubai group has been developing projects in the Middle East for more than 10 years and has completed 37 buildings to date, making up 7,817 units, spanning 13,945,299 sq ft of area.

The company currently has projects under development in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Jordan, Egypt and Lebanon.

“We are certainly looking to expand from our base at the moment and if the right opportunities to bring added value are presented we will look closely at them. It is our goal to become one of the leading luxury developers in the world, not only the Middle East,” said El Chaar.

Work on the Ministry of Housing and Construction projects are expected to begin early next year after a full assessment of the land and development mix has been completed, he added.-TradeArabia News Service