United Real Estate Company (URC), a leading development and property services company based in Kuwait, has reported a net profit of KD8 million ($26.47 million) for 2015, an 8.3 per cent increase from the previous year.

URC chairman Tariq Abdul Salam also announced a 34 per cent increase in net operating profit to KD23 million ($76.11 million). Revenues rose 17 per cent to reach KD61 million ($201.87 million).

The company’s general assembly meeting took place at the Chairman’s Club in Kipco Tower, and was followed by URC’s annual Shafafiyah (transparency) Investor’s Forum, which included a review of the past five years, in addition to highlighting the outlook for 2016 to 2020.

Salam said URC had performed strongly despite market challenges and achieved a 52 per cent increase in the company’s total assets over the last five years, yielding a cumulative value of KD554 million ($1.83 billion). The company’s revenues also rose 154 per cent since 2010 to reach KD 61 million last year.

“Our focus has been to consistently apply our strategic long term vision to yield steady, positive financial results year on year, and develop a range of unique development projects across the GCC and Mena region," he said.  

Ahmad Kasem, deputy chief executive officer of URC, added: “In 2015, we completed several projects including Raouche View at 1090, a luxury high-rise building situated overlooking the famous Raouche rocks in Beirut, Lebanon; Aswar Residences, a 75-unit residential community in New Cairo, Egypt; and Abdali Mall, a 56,500-sq-m entertainment and retail shopping destination in Amman, Jordan, set to open its doors next month.

“URC’s outlook for 2016 to 2020 is for continued growth and profitability with a focus on diversifying the company’s capacity to take advantage of emerging development opportunities in Kuwait as well as the Mena region," he said.  - TradeArabia News Service