Tecom Investments, the free zone authority responsible for the Tecom, Dubai Media City and Dubai Internet City zones, has said that it will deliver an extra two million square feet of office space by the end of this year.
The company, part of the government-owned Dubai Holding, is set to deliver most of this space within the city’s new creative hub, Dubai Design District (d3), which sits on the opposite side of Al Khail Road to the Downtown Dubai district.
Tecom said 11 new buildings will open at d3 before the end of the year, alongside three new buildings at International Media Production Zone.
It also said that the new 1.8 million square foot Innovation Hub building based within Dubai Media City is set to open by the first quarter of 2017 while the Creative Community building within d3 – aimed at providing local designers and artists with galleries and studios – will be completed in 2018. It has been designed by UK-based architecture company Foster + Partners.
Tecom Investments also revealed plans to rebrand to Tecom Group, which it said reflects its broader range of activities.
As well as overseeing 10 free-zone communities and 11 business parks, Tecom has also moved into residential development through its Villa Lantana project in Al Barsha South, and it has its own media organisation, Arab Media Group. It operates the Arabian Radio Network, events company Done Events and the Global Village tourism project.
Tecom Group chief executive Dr Amina Al Rustamani said: “Our upcoming developments will be fully-fledged communities with the objective of enabling business growth and championing creativity and innovation, and our new brand symbolises our diversified portfolio of projects.”
Rents for office space in Dubai remained flat in the first half of this year, with prime offices priced at Dh250 per square foot, secondary space at Dh130 and tertiary space at Dh70, according to a property report by consultancy Cluttons.
However, it added that the picture remained “complex”, with exceptions at the top end such as Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) and Emirates Towers where rents are Dh275 and Dh300 per sq ft respectively.
Cluttons also said it expected higher demand from international businesses looking to service Iranian operations from Dubai when sanctions are lifted.
This “will once again place upwards pressure on Grade A rents in sought-after sub-markets, particularly the city’s primary free zones such as DIFC, Internet City and Media City, d3 and Dubai Airport Free Zone”, it said.
mfahy@thenational.ae
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