Qatari Diar Goes Ahead with Ambitious Chelsea Barracks Project

Doha, April 24 (QNA) -Qatari Diar Acting Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Khalid El-Sayyed has affirmed that works are underway as regard the ambitious Chelsea Barracks project in London. In an exclusive interview with Qatar News Agency (QNA) on Wednesday El- Sayyed said Qatari Diar, the property investment arm of the country's sovereign wealth fund, is waiting for concluding the official approvals for going ahead with the aforesaid project noting that Qatari Diar should first get the approval of the neighbours of Chelsea Barracks to kick start. Elaborating El-Sayyed said that Qatari Diar has already got the approval of 30 % of the neighbours, the matter which will further enhance the company's position. The Master plan concept for Chelsea Barracks merges this old military site in Chelsea with the surrounding Belgravia neighborhood through a modern and vivid residential area, which combines houses with additional apartment buildings, as well as local shops and community facilities; all spanning over the 52,000 sqm site. Qatar owns a string of property assets in London, including 80% of Western Europes tallest building, The Shard, Harrods and the US embassy. It won approval for the 13-acre Chelsea Barracks site in 2011, but work on the project has not progressed since. The former barracks presents an opportunity to create a new cosmopolitan community. It is Qatari Diars largest residential development in Europe in terms of value. Qatar has insisted that a $4.7bn plan to build hundreds of luxury properties at London’s Chelsea Barracks will go ahead, despite reports that it had been postponed. Local officials expected work to begin at the end of the year or the beginning of next, though the sovereign investor has until December 2016 to commence work. The key aspirations identified by the Masterplan team in conjunction with a public consultation process, include a street plan reminiscent of Georgian London with garden squares and a balance between building height and the surrounding architecture. Chelsea Barracks is one of the most ambitious among Qatari Diars overseas projects. The property arm of Qatars sovereign wealth fund has more than 80 projects worldwide worth about $60bn. The acting Acting Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Qatari Diar, said while reviewing the company's projects in the workshop "business leaders" held at the Doha Ritz Carlton hotel on Wednesday in the second day of the Eighth World Chambers Congress ,now in progress in Doha, that the company has projects reach a value of about $ 35 billion, including about 50 projects in about 29 State. It is worth to mention that Qatari Diar Real Estate Company was established in 2005 by the Qatar Investment Authority, the sovereign wealth fund of the State of Qatar. Headquartered northeast of capital Doha on the coast of the Arabian Gulf, Qatari Diar was entrusted to support Qatars growing economy and to coordinate the countrys real estate development priorities. The companys first project, Lusail City, was launched in December of that year and quickly went on to gain tremendous praise for its innovative approach to real estate. The progressive, self-contained city is the largest single development to be undertaken in the State of Qatar, and although it is currently under construction, Lusail already signifies Qatars progress on a grand scale, reflecting the vision and quality that have become synonymous to Qatari Diar. The Lusail Real Estate Development Company was established in September 2008 with a dedication to the development, construction and ongoing operations of the visionary Lusail City development. (QNA)