Dubai Investments Park (DIP), the largest integrated commercial, industrial and residential community in the Middle East, is fast emerging as the preferred destination for businesses and residents alike, in view of its proximity to Dubai World Central, Dubai South and the Expo 2020 site.

An indication of this is the increase in the number of tenants and sub-tenants in DIP, with over 100 new companies either leasing or sub-leasing premises in the 2,300-hectare business park, remarked Omar Al Mesmar, the general manager of DIP.

"In the last 17 years, DIP has grown from a unique concept on paper to a successful mixed-use project. It is the torchbearer in the development of business parks in the entire region, creating world-class facilities and attracting industries from across the globe over the years, which goes in line with the Dubai Industrial Strategy."

"DIP’s proximity to Expo 2020 site and Dubai South makes it the preferred destination for both investors and end-users. This is also leading to increasing demand for projects to develop hotels, serviced apartments within the facility," he remarked.

A wholly-owned subsidiary of Dubai Investments, DIP said during the year, it has witnessed a surge in subleasing of labour and accommodation rooms from 16,000 to 21,000 rooms. The increased capacity will help accommodate 84,000 labourers compared to 68,000 labourers earlier.

Similarly, the total area leased by the existing companies during 2016 has also increased by 33 per cent – from approximately 6.5 million sq ft to 9 million sq ft, particularly in warehouse storage spaces.

The total number of companies within DIP has now risen to more than 4,600, with the facility covering the entire spectrum of industries – from medium to light industrial units in aluminium, steel manufacturing, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, textiles, plastics, oil and gas, construction, building materials and contracting sectors, it added.

Reflecting its growing pre-eminence and surging demand, DIP has also announced the opening of a new 114-room four-star Fortune Park boutique hotel to cater to the business and leisure travellers.

This comes as part of its plans to open eight new hotels and serviced apartments in the next three to four years in DIP. To be built by individual investors, the hotels and apartments will be of various star categories, said the company statement.

The new hotels will perfectly complement the growth of DIP as a city-within-a-city. It will also provide a major boost to the hospitality sector as Dubai expects to attract as many as 25 million visitors during Expo 2020, including 17.5 million overseas tourists.

The emirate will require an additional 45,000 hotel rooms to match the rising demand by 2020 and an investment of nearly $7.1 billion is expected in hotel projects, it added.

Al Mesmar said the total value of investments made by DIP tenants towards their facilities and factories over the years is approximately Dh50 billion ($13.6 billion).

"DIP’s world-class logistics, strategic location, state-of-the-art facilities and business-friendly environment offers the right mix for local, regional and international companies," he added.-TradeArabia News Service