Healthy start

Ithmaar Development Company announced the award of a $69 million reclamation contract for its $1.6 billion Dilmunia 'health island' project to Boskalis Westminster Middle East Ltd.

Dilmunia is set to revolutionise health care in the region and turn the Kingdom of Bahrain into a regional centre for health tourism. The scope of contractor's work will include dredging and reclamation of the sea bed, rock protection and canal works. To be located on the northeast coast of Bahrain, Dilmunia is the largest health care, leisure and real estate project of its kind in the Middle East.

In addition to specialist clinics, hospitals, spas and other wellness facilities, it will include hotels, residential areas and leisure and shopping centres, providing residents and visitors with state-of-the-art health care services in a resort-type environment.

Ithmaar Development Company, the wholly owned development arm of Bahrain-based Ithmaar Bank, is part of the Ithmaar banking group. A successful private placement by Ithmaar Bank raised $185 million for Dilmunia Development Fund. The funds raised are being deployed in purchasing the land and investing in the initial infrastructure works for the island, paving the way for the project to enter its next phase, when some of the plots will be sold to investors for development.

"Dilmunia will become an integral part of Bahrain's infrastructure, providing benefits well beyond the $1.6 billion that will be directly injected into the economy. While largely self-contained, the health island is expected to generate other value-added economic activities, centred around the health care industry, and will complement Bahrain's strong public and private medical facilities," said Ithmaar Development Company CEO & board member and Health Island Company chairman Mohammed Khalil Alsayed.

"Dilmunia will turn the Kingdom into a centre for wellness and specialist treatments and allow investors to tap into the growing international demand for health tourism. Dilmunia will not only target people seeking treatments, but will be a major leisure destination as well," Mr Alsayed added.

Site mobilisation for the reclamation work on the island is set to commence on March 1 and is expected to be completed in approximately 15 months. Boskalis, part of Royal Boskalis Westminster NV, is a leading international dredging company that has executed major reclamation projects within the kingdom, including for the industrial area in Hidd and the new Northern Town.

Mr Alsayed said that the reclamation and construction work will be carried out according to strict international standards to ensure that the environmental impact is as minimal as possible. The first phase of an Environmental Impact Assessment has already been carried out, with positive initial results.

The master planners for the health island are DP Architects, an established international architectural firm based in Singapore. Ithmaar Development Company will be seeking the expertise and partnership of top health care and wellness establishments to offer their services to residence and visitors to the island.

The development will include three five-star boutique hotels, with French, Chinese and Thai-inspired themes, as well as a four-star luxury hotel with a Middle Eastern design.