Deal for 80ha 鈥渄ream lifestyle鈥� gated community with developer Sahara could be first of many

Gleeds has been appointed consultant on a scheme to build hundreds of new towns across India for the subcontinent鈥檚 growing middle-class.

The firm is working on 217 鈥渋ntegrated townships鈥�, planned by developer Sahara Infrastructure & Housing, providing project management and other construction services. An 80ha development for 10,000 residents is under construction 16km outside Lucknow in the north of the country.

Other projects range from 40ha to 120ha in size and span the country, from Kerala in the south to Uttar Pradesh in the north. It is thought that each could cost up to 拢1.25bn.

However, rather than socially diverse eco-towns, the settlements are likely to be gated communities for India鈥檚 privileged. Stuart Senior, managing partner at Gleeds, said: 鈥淚t鈥檚 all about lifestyle upgrade. These have high-quality apartment blocks, schools, hospitals, malls and health clubs 鈥� everything needed to lead a life both domestically and socially.鈥�

A spokesperson for Sahara Infrastructure & Housing said it was aiming to provide a 鈥渄ream lifestyle鈥�. Housing will be a mixture of high- and mid-rise apartment blocks, houses and bungalows.

The project is Gleeds鈥� first big win in India since it set up an office in Bangalore earlier this year. Senior said: 鈥淭his is a big milestone for Gleeds in India. We are very new to the market.鈥� Further offices in Mumbai, Chennai and Hyderabad are expected before the end of 2008.

The news comes as it emerged that Gleeds has been appointed commercial manager on the 拢1.6bn Al Wa鈥檃b City development in Qatar.

The firm said it had been brought in to work on the mixed-use scheme, which aims to provide housing for 8,000 residents and commercial space to the south-west of the capital city, Doha.

The contract is the latest move in the firm鈥檚 drive to establish itself in the country, which it regards as a key growth market.

Alan Turner, Gleeds鈥� Gulf managing director, said: 鈥淚t鈥檚 probably the biggest growth area in the Middle East. We see Qatar as one of the jewels in the crown.鈥� The 1.25 million m2 scheme includes a shopping area around Barahat Al Wa鈥檃b piazza, and a square the size of seven football pitches, as well as more than 2,000 houses and apartments. It is expected to complete in 2010.

The appointments come as companies are increasingly looking abroad for contracts. Deloitte analyst Jack Kelly said: 鈥淚 see consulting engineers travelling the globe. If you are being asked to grow, you can only do so if the market is growing.鈥�

Postscript

For more on Gleeds, search

Topics