Samir Salya looks at the popularity of financial and tech clusters in Dubai

The strength of the Dubai International Finance Centre (DIFC) has been further improved by the Emirates Tower Business Park project next door. This is thanks mostly to the fact that there is such a strong demand from tech, media and finance companies for premium, expensive and exclusive office space in Dubai.

The DIFC was set up in 2004 as a special economic zone in the city and has become Dubai’s foremost office address. It’s almost 100 per cent occupied and boasts the most expensive and valuable rentals for office premises in Dubai. All of this will help the Dh5b Emirates Towers project become extremely successful.

Automatic demand for new project

With such an illustrious neighbour, it looks as though the new project will help to meet the growing need for high class office space. Dubai is no longer merely a regional business hub, but quickly becoming more important as a global one.

The Emirates Tower Business Park project will complement the DIFC, and act as an extension of Dubai’s financial district. It will also help to put the city on the path to be a major player in the financial sector, eventually rivalling Wall Street.

Big demand from tech tenants

There is a constant demand for office space here, particularly from the constantly expanding tech sector. The new development will more than triple the size of the DIFC by completion in 2024 will help to meet the demand for premium office space.

At the heart of the new development is the Emirates Towers office building, which is already commanding high rents. International occupiers are paying more rent per square foot than in any other office space in Dubai. Therefore, it looks like the demand for rental space in the finished development will be high.

New clusters ahead of schedule

New clusters, like the Innovation Hub, are running faster than predicted and are ahead of schedule. We’re looking at an early 2019 completion, if not late 2018 and most of it will already be let. This means that it’s likely that rents will continue to rise.

About Samir Salya

Samir Salya is the Chairman of Reign Holdings, and is involved in UK and UAE real estate and construction. Samir holds over 20 years’ experience in executive management, business expansion, performance improvement, sales and marketing.