Doha Festival City construction makes significant progress.

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20 May 2012

Doha Festival City, the regional QAR 6 billion entertainment, retail and hospitality destination, has made significant progress and is on target for scheduled completion of the first phase following its ground breaking in October 2011.

Set to become a driving force behind Qatar’s diverse economic development and covering a total area of 433,847sqm, Doha Festival City will have over 260,000sqm of gross leasable area accommodating entertainment and leisure facilities, supermarkets, cinemas, hotels and conference facilities.

IKEA’s flagship store is the first piece of Doha Festival City’s wide ranging retail offer which will culminate with the delivery of the iconic mega complex that will host more than 500 international and local retail and dining outlets.

Greg Douglas, Development Director - Doha Festival City said: “Hard rock made excavation more difficult than expected but we have managed to move over 102,000 metric tons of earth and made significant progress on the structural front. Three levels of the IKEA store, part of the first phase of development, have already been constructed. At 168m, the IKEA store is longer than two new A380 Airbuses laid end to end and covers a GLA of approximately 32,000m2. The roof is the next stage for completion and will cover over 21,000sqm, the size of two and a half football pitches.”

The General Contractor package for IKEA has been awarded to the joint venture between Qatari Arabian Construction Co (QACC) and Amana Qatar Contracting Co with the mechanical, electrical and plumbing package awarded to Hamad and Mohammed Al-Futtaim Engineering.

Kareem Shamma, CEO, Bawabat Al-Shamal Real Estate Company (BASREC), owners and developers of Doha Festival City said: “The construction progress is testament to the expertise of all teams involved in this landmark project. Their commitment to Doha Festival City is a fantastic endorsement of what we are looking to achieve here. More than 777,000 man-hours have already been invested to bring the project to this stage.”

Conveniently located 15km north of Doha on Al Shamal Road, one of the arterial routes connecting the capital city to Bahrain via the proposed ‘Friendship’ causeway, Doha Festival City will be showcased at Cityscape Qatar later this month.