Tourists visiting the Burj Khalifa have told how dozens of people “began to cry” after being stranded on the building’s observation deck for over an hour.
At the Top, a visitor attraction located on the 124th floor of the world’s tallest building, is temporarily closed to the public following “technical issues with the power supply” but is scheduled to reopen on Sunday, February 14.
A senior Dubai Civil Defence official confirmed to Gulf News on Monday there was an incident at the Burj Khalifa on Saturday evening.
The official said: “This is a minor case; it was not serious at all. Staff members at the Burj Khalifa handled the situation perfectly. Our role was to ensure the safety of the public. It is absolutely normal for a new building to face minor issues such as this, which involved one of the Burj Khalifa’s elevators.”
Gulf News spoke on Monday to several tourists who were stranded on the observation deck for over an hour on Saturday.
Michael Timms, a 31-year-old telecommunications engineer from the US, said: “I was walking around the observation deck when I heard this really loud noise and what looked like smoke or dust coming out from one of the elevator doors. There were at least 60 people on the deck at the time. Employees and security staff were telling people that everything was ok. But once it became clear we were not being allowed back down, some people got really angry while others started crying.”…SOURCE
Dubai today unveiled a sweeping US$10 billion (Dh36.7bn) rescue package from the Abu Dhabi Government that will allow Dubai World to deal with a slew of immediate financial obligations, including a $3.5bn Islamic bond that is due today.
Will the Palms Ever Be Completed?
The move ends months of speculation about how Nakheel, a developer owned by Dubai World, would pay off the sukuk amid declining property values and a slowdown in sales that left it virtually bereft of revenues.
It also represents by far the most direct and explicit support of Dubai to date by the Abu Dhabi Government in the wake of the financial crisis. The crisis battered property values in Dubai and slowed its ambitious growth plans as it struggled to find a solution to a crippling debt load that has been estimated at $85bn, a total greater than Dubai’s annual GDP…MORE
The Palm Jumeirah is not sinking into the sea, contrary to speculation in recent days, a Nakheel executive says.
“The proof is in the pudding,” said Shaun Lenehan, the head of Nakheel’s environment department. “The Palm is intact. If there were subsidence, you would see cracks in the buildings, windows popping out. We have no evidence of that happening.”
But the US$12 billion (Dh44.07) island has settled slightly since it was created, in line with all artificially created land masses, Mr Lenehan and other engineers said.
Is Atlantis Destined to Sink?
He was responding to claims from a landscape surveyor speaking at a conference in Qatar, who was quoted as saying that the Palm Jumeirah was sinking by an average of 5mm a year and might flood in the future if ocean levels rose. The engineer cited satellite images of the island taken periodically over the past few years…MORE
The engine of the black Corvette revved to a gasket-popping roar. Its driver leant out of his window. He was dressed in traditional Arab robes but wore a rubber wizard’s mask. He held an aerosol aloft and directed a jet of party foam into the air. Four-wheel drives plastered in pictures of Dubai’s Royal Family roared their engines back in approval. The cacophony was deafening.
On the opposite carriageway smoke billowed from the spinning back wheels of a new Land Cruiser as the driver pressed the brakes and floored the accelerator. This was the favourite way for many of the fervently patriotic and car crazy Emiratis to mark National Day in Dubai this week, the 38th anniversary of the founding of the United Arab Emirates, and one of the biggest celebrations of the year.
A mile away at the new Marina Yacht Club, Western expats were also working their way into a party mood. Deferential Filipino staff served a foamy lobster broth as an amuse bouche between courses. Beer and cocktails loosened tongues and a knot of dancers formed in front of the band. Tens of millions of pounds worth of powerboats bobbed at their moorings beneath the revelry on the terrace. Behind the boats a dozen skyscrapers framed the view, a few of the lights in their thousands of flats were on. “It’s so beautiful here,” said a pretty young Anglo-Indian woman clutching a large glass of chilled white wine and taking in the scene.
Welcome to the modern equivalent of the last days of Rome. The failure of Dubai World, one of the Emirate’s flagship companies, to honour a debt due last month has rocked this city state to its foundations. By any conventional logic Dubai is now a busted flush…MORE
Just ask yourself, why would you buy when the charges may be as high as 100k per year for maintenance…
Homeowners in The Cove development in Ras al Khaimah could each face service bills of more than Dh100,000 (US$27,226) a year because the developer must rely on generators to provide power to the luxury resort.
That is more than the average cost of renting a villa in the emirate, which has been beset by acute electricity shortages.
“If they are running the airconditioning during the month, they are having a bill of Dh3000 to Dh4000 a month,” said Ashraf al Agamawy, the manager of the project, which includes a five-star Rotana Hotel.
“We don’t get electricity from the Government and are running over eight diesel generators, which is very expensive.
The Cove in Ras Al Khaimah
It costs me about Dh2.5 million per month.”
The Cove was launched in April 2005 by Orascom Hotels and Development, one of Egypt’s largest developers. It comprises 78 apartments and 188 villas, 75 of which were sold under a form of timeshare agreement with the Rotana Hotel.
Under timeshare agreements, owners are allowed to use their villas for a maximum of four weeks a year…SOURCE
The Abu Shagara area in Sharjah suffered a power outage on Monday morning, sparking fears that the power snapping has come to revisit them like in August and early this month.
The frequent power outages that had badly affected Sharjah industrial areas eased during Eid Al Fitr and subsequent days, bringing residents relief. But on Monday, the power went off around 4am in Abu Shagara. It was not restored until 2.30pm, said residents.
Ajmal Hassan, who lives on the 15th floor of a building in the area, woke up in the morning to a dark apartment and wondered what had happened. “I never thought the power outage will happen again. I thought this must be a mistake, but I had paid my electricity bill. Then I opened the apartment door and found the whole floor in darkness,” Hassan said.
“I have a well-defined routine each morning. I prepare my coffee, have my shower, watch the news on television and then go for work. On Monday, I could not do that.”
Muwahib Ali said she lives in a tall tower with her family and she decided not go to work or send her children to school because they live on the 15th floor and could not use the lift… SOURCE
Two new draft laws, which will be submitted to the cabinet within two months, could see the UAE change its rule on foreign ownership of companies, Economy Minister Sultan bin Saeed Al Mansouri said on Sunday.
The minister said the UAE government was working on a new industrial law that would allow 100 per cent ownership for foreign investors in a move aimed at attracting investment in high-tech and capital-intensive industries.
The government wants to make the industrial law more attractive to foreigners who wanted to relocate their businesses to the UAE to benefit from the country’s manufacturing infrastructure.
“We must create the right environment to attract foreign investors,” the minister told reporters.
Details about the new industrial law would be announced after it is approved by the Cabinet, he said. At present, foreign investors can own only up to a 49 per cent share in a business, except in free zones, where they can own as much as 100 per cent… SOURCE
“Misuse” of the Metro by some commuters had led to intermittent service with delays at stations and causing inconvenience to commuters during the first two days of the Metro operation, an RTA official said.
Peyman Younes Parham, an RTA spokesperson, said: “Some passengers on board pushed emergency buttons to open or close the doors or just for fun and this led to delays in the train service,” he said, adding that most of the commuters do not yet know how to use the train… SOURCE
Dubai makes history with the opening of the Metro system at 9pm on Wednesday. The world’s largest automated driverless Metro system has been built by 30,000 workers at an unprecedented pace and will serve around 1.2 million passengers every day.
emand for generators has shot up in Sharjah and supplies are running out as hundreds of businesses and residential areas continue to endure power outages. Although power has been restored in most areas, power fluctuations have continued with industrial areas 1, 13, 17, and 12 worst hit during the past four days. At their peak the power problems, which began a fortnight ago, caused a blackout that affected more than 70 per cent of Sharjah… SOURCE
Hundreds of workers went on strike claiming unpaid salaries, and though the Ministry of Labour found no labour discrepancies, the protests continued till late on Monday.
About 300 workers of Al Habtoor Engineering demonstrated peacefully at a Deira labour accommodation on Sunday night. By Monday morning, the protests spread to the accommodation in Jebel Ali and a worksite in Deira.
Though these sporadic incidents were brought under control by the police and labour ministry officials, amid claims of resolution, it was clearly far from over.
Police control said 400 people marched from Jebel Ali to Al Quoz on Monday night over the same issue. Some were seen throwing garbage cans in departure from the peaceful trend.
Acting Labour Ministry Director-General Humaid bin Deemas told official news agency Wam, “An inspection of the company records clearly showed that it had been paying the wages of the workers with delay or deductions.”
Colonel Ali Abdulla Al Ghaithi, Deputy Director of General Department of Emergency of the Dubai Police and Transport Security Supervisor, said of the earlier two incidents, “It was a peaceful.” None was injured nor damage caused… SOURCE
…Isolated incidents of ‘bling’ reoccur throughout the space, most notably in the bar area, where a sense of self confident, old-school glamour presides. One whole wall is adorned in black leather; marble coats the bar’s surface and upstands; red, crocodile leather bar stools and lounge seats inject a vibrant splash of colour; and wooden flooring reinforces the comfortable, all-encompassing nature of the space. “One of my joys is designing bars,” Mackenzie admitted. “This is where the glitz and glamour come in, but in a small area. It is moody, cosy and secluded, like a dining room in Paris.”
The restaurant’s location in a shariah-compliant hotel dictated that the bar would act only as a holding area, rather than a fully-fledged attraction in its own right. This presented a design challenge that Outcast was able to overcome by creating an intimate pocket nestled inconspicuously into one corner.
“We created a space that was not immediately visible to people dining in the restaurant or even walking past. It is actually possible to have a meal in the restaurant and leave without even noticing the bar – which was quite a design challenge,” Penketh said.
Overtones of glamour are also inherent in the elaborate crystal chandeliers that tumble elegantly from the ceilings elsewhere in the restaurant. “Again,
we wanted to bring in a bit of glitz
and glamour, and the lighting and crystals are part of that. Everything else is pretty angular and straightforward,” commented Mackenzie… The underlying inspiration for the restaurant was a classical dining room, with strong art deco influences from the 1920s and 30s. A simple yet striking colour scheme favours beige, black and red – but while the design is subtle and understated, it is also extremely rich, Penketh pointed out.
“We were careful not to overdesign, but every inch of the space contains some level of detail. It is a very rich design but we’ve created something that is comfortable and that you are not overwhelmed by,” he elaborated. “There is an incredible amount of work in the detailing and this grows on you as you sit in the restaurant.”
Sculpted ceilings
The depth of the design is intended to reveal itself only upon closer inspection. Ceilings, for example, have been carefully sculpted, with different layers, coffered effects and elaborate inlays acting as a sophisticated differentiator of spaces. “Ceilings are an important element in restaurants at the high end of the market. You have to use them to define the space.
“We’ve also used the ceiling to create perspective and to give the impression of more space. Most people don’t look up when they go into a restaurant but part of our aim was to make sure that the longer you spend in there, the
more you notice how much is going on,”
Penketh explained.
The carefully considered nature of the design also reveals itself in the seating, which was all conceptualised from scratch and manufactured in Dubai. Different types and heights of seating create choice for diners, as well as visual contrast across the space. Along one side of the restaurant, red banquet seating melds itself into curved booths cut into the wall to create secluded, semi-enclosed cocoons…SOURCE
Dubai Airports has won the Newsweek Award of Excellence, achieving the accolade ‘The Single Largest Development in Aviation History in the Region’.
It was chosen for the award by senior correspondents and writers of the Newsweek (Arabic) editorial board.
Dubai Airports chief executive officer Paul Griffiths said the growth and development of Dubai city and Dubai Airports were closely inter-linked.
“As the city has grown, Dubai Airports has seen an increase in the number of its client airlines and their passengers, bringing more business, industry and professional expertise to enhance Dubai’s business acumen and standing in the world community,” he said in remarks made available here…SOURCE
It is unfortunate that the initiatives of the Gulf Cooperation Council toward cleantech were far overshadowed during the last 18 months by the news coverage of volatile oil prices and massive real estate projects in Dubai.
The Middle East (especially the member countries of the GCC) holds vast opportunities for investors in cleantech. There are billions of dollars that have been pledged to “greening the gulf” by the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Qatar, among others.
But the United Arab Emirates holds the greatest promise for cleantech investment. Not only is the UAE visionary, proactive and cash-rich, it statistically is the country in the most need of ecological reform.
In March of 2008, the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) released data that revealed that the average person in the United Arab Emirates puts more demand on the global ecosystem than any other country, giving it the world’s largest per-capita ecological footprint.
The WWF rankings are measured in global hectares—the area of biologically productive land and sea needed to provide the resources consumed by an average person. The UAE’s ecological footprint measured 11.9 global hectares per person, compared to a global average of 2.2 hectares a person. Even the United States measured 9.6 hectares per person.
One of the largest contributor factors to this ranking is the use of water. Roughly 25 percent of water in the Gulf region has already been consumed, according to reports about energy consumption in the UAE. One-fifth of the water is being used for power generation.
That problem is likely to get worse, as energy demand is rising more rapidly in the UAE than in the world at large. The International Energy Agency estimates world energy demand is estimated to increase by 45 percent in 2030, but current estimates suggest that the domestic demand for power in the UAE will more than double by 2020.
According to The World Energy Council, the Gulf will require 100 gigawatts of additional power to meet demand. Estimated costs range from $900 million for Bahrain, $800 million for Oman, $600 million for Qatar, $15 billion for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and up to $10 billion for the United Arab Emirates.
As is the style of the UAE, the government announced mega projects and major financial backing to reduce their environmental impact through green building laws and the creation of a zero-carbon, zero-waste, car-free city development project. Private equity investors in the region also began to buy interests in solar, wind and biodiesel.
But soon after these announcements the world stopped due the the economic crisis.
During my last trip to Dubai I was acutely aware that for the first time in many years I could hear the prayer calls coming from the mosques. I mention this because it highlights the dramatic decrease in building activity.
But a lesson has been learned, and it is one that will supplement the government’s cleantech initiative going forward, ensuring the Emirates emerges as the leader in cleantech implementation and investment opportunities.
Speaking with both investors and real estate developers over the last few months, I have come to realize there has been a paradigm shift with respect to the concept of a real estate asset. There is a movement away from the traditional income-per-tenant model, to a more sustainable income stream, namely energy production.
Over and over I heard the same concept: This downturn highlights the need to secure a more stable income stream from real estate.
Hence, while the UAE Government has created a mandate to reduce the carbon footprint of the country, I think it will be the demand for stable income by developers that will truly drive demand far above expectations going forward for cleantech in the region.
Given the technology now exists, it only seems logical that any new construction will be thought of as an independent power generation stations almost as much as they will be thought of as income-producing assets through occupancy. Why wouldn’t a builder incorporate solar panels, wind turbines and energy efficiency systems in order to secure a stable stream of income? …SOURCE
