Dubai to spearhead investments in Turkey

ISTANBUL - Hürriyet Daily News

Dubai-based Jumeriah, the Middle East’s largest tourism company, and the Dubai Business Council are preparing to invest in Turkey. 

Demet Sabancı Çetindoğan, owner of Istanbul’s historic Pera Palace Hotel, has signed a deal with Dubai’s Jumeriah International to take over the management of the hotel starting in 2012, according to daily Sabah. The management duration and price, however, have not been announced. The hotel’s public relations department said they had not received any official announcement regarding the Jumeriah transaction. 

Jumeriah owns some of the most expensive hotels in Dubai, including the famous Burj Al Arab Emirates Tower, also known as the “sail boat hotel,” the world’s first seven-star hotel. 

Gulf firms on the way

Meanwhile, the Dubai Business Council, which manages the investments of the royal families in the Gulf states and the United Arab Emirates, along with private investment funds, is planning to invest $2.5 billion in Turkey. 

The council initially aims to open a large tourist facility in Bodrum, a beach town in Turkey’s southwest. The facility will feature a hotel, a shopping center, offices, a residence and a marina. 

Süleyman Taşçı, president of the Dubai Business Council, told Sabah that the council planned to invest primarily in the areas of energy, construction, food, tourism and aviation. Taşçı also said the council was looking for strategic partnerships with the Energy Ministry and local energy companies. 
The investments are not short-term, said Taşcı, adding that the council was interested in opportunities that would create employment.