Landmark raises its investment capital from $149 million to $240 million
2/11/2006
The Lebanon Brief
Investment Development Authority of Lebanon (IDAL) announced that it has amended the Package Deal Contract it signed with Landmark s.a.l to include a wider range of services and benefits.
The amendment of the investment and development incentives was executed because Landmark raised the investment capital of its project from $149m to $240m.
Landmark is a touristic commercial project in downtown Beirut and was
approved by IDAL in 2005. It consists of a 150 meter tower with residential, commercial, and entertainment premises and includes a five star luxury hotel. The project, which provides around 345 job opportunities, is expected to be completed by December 2008.
Here is an article on The Landmark project published on 05/26/2004):
Beirut’s New Landmark Soon after the launch of the Sannine Zenith Project, Lebanon is witnessing the start of another groundbreaking development
The disclosure of Lebanon’s Landmark project has once again raised many eyebrows in many parts of the world as investors demonstrate their faith in this small country despite the regional tension. The $200 million project came in the heels of another mega project, Sannine Zenith which is expected to turn an entire mountain into one of the biggest tourist attractions in the Middle East if not in the world.
Lebanese officials say that many Arab investors are eyeing other projects in Lebanon and that in the coming few months, the country will witness an influx of capitals from the Arab states. One of the major shareholders in the Landmark project, which was revealed to both President Emile Lahoud and Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, said that the project is expected to create hundreds of jobs once it is completed.
The 40 storey building will be the tallest structure in Lebanon.
UAE investor Khalaf Habtoor is also building the Metropolitan City Center in Sin el Fiel. But this building will have a 33 floor tower. Habtoor invested more than $150 million in this project.
Investors said that the world renowned architect
Jean Nouvel has handed in the final blueprint for a commercial project that will be known as the Bilbao Museum of the Middle East for its creative, beautiful, ingenuous and unique design. The project, which is being planned by the company Landmark, will be located in
Riad Solh square in Downtown Beirut.
It will be made up of two low-level buildings that will not exceed 60-meters and one 155-meter, or 40 floor, tower - making it one of the tallest and largest structures in Lebanon.
Costing
$200 million, including the $60 million purchase of the land, which is currently occupied by a large parking lot, the development will consist of a five-star hotel, furnished apartments for rent, luxurious apartments for sale, an 18,000 square meter mall, a cinema complex that can accommodate up to 1,500 people, an amusement center, a health club, a spa and a large underground parking lot. The total built-up area of the future landmark will reach 120,000 square meters. The Landmark project is expected to create approximately 500 new jobs.
The Landmark is a 75 percent Kuwaiti and 25 percent Lebanese owned company. The prime Kuwaiti shareholders of Landmark are Hamad Al-Wazzan and Sheikha Souad Al-Homaidi and the Lebanese shareholders are Ahmed Baadarani and Nassif Karam.
"We hope to start construction work before the end of the year, as soon as we get the necessary permits for excavation and construction," said assistant managing director for administration and construction at Landmark, Ziyad Ibrahim Alshaar. "And as soon as we start the work, we expect to finish building
the future architectural icon of Lebanon and the Middle East within three years," he added.
The Landmark concluded several agreements with local and international companies to complete the project. These include local company Millennium, a French company specializing in glass, a British company for the commercial center, another British company for the preliminary architectural studies and the local Khatib and Elmi company for the execution and mapping studies.
Jean Nouvel is famous in the Arab world for his design of the Institute du Monde Arabe (IMA) in Paris, one of the most eye-catching concepts in the city of lights. He received a number of prestigious awards, including the Equerre d'Argent for the best French building for both his IMA (1987) and the Lyon Opera House (1993).
"My design will be aligned with the spirit of Beirut's history, but also to create a new Beirut," Nouvel said when he first visited Beirut last year.
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