Arcapita Heads $1.5B Real Estate Project
Looking to capitalize on the booming tourism and business environment in Bahrain, Arcapita has joined with an investment firm to develop Bahrain Bay, a $1.5 billion mixed-use waterfront real estate project comprised of commercial, residential and leisure facilities including the Kingdom’s first Four Seasons hotel, which when complete will be the tallest building in Bahrain. Plans for the hotel include 220 rooms, conference facilities and a private beach, outfitted to the exacting standards Four Seasons guests have become accustomed.
Picture: Four Seasons hotel to serve as centerpiece of waterfront project.
The project will exceed 1.1 million square meters, and will be constructed in three phases expected to finish in 2010. Phase One will be land reclamation and infrastructure development starting in January 2006. Phase Two, finishing in 2008, will see construction of the Four Seasons hotel and Arcapita’s new global headquarters—both anchor tenants of the project. The last step, Phase Three, will introduce residential, retail and commercial entities to the community.
To continue reading please click here
Dr. Naser M. Y. Al BelooshiBahrain's Ambassador to the United States
|
Calendar
|
Links of Interest
|
President Bush Signs USBFTA Into Law
On January 11, in a formal signing ceremony at the Oval Office, Bahrain Ambassador to the United States, His Excellency, Dr. Naser Al Belooshi, joined President Bush as he signed the historic U.S.-Bahrain Free Trade Agreement into law. The agreement was the first ever between a Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) nation and the United States and is the beginning of what the President hopes will be a region-wide free trade zone that will strengthen ties between the West and the Middle East. The FTA provides immediate, duty-free access to all consumer and industrial products traded between the long-time friends.
Attending the signing ceremony were (From left to right) Deputy Secretary of State Robert Zoellick, US Trade Representative Rob Portman, President George W. Bush and Bahrain's Ambassador to Washington, Dr. Naser Al Belooshi.
To continue reading please click here
The USBFTA Is Official—What's Next?
With the historic USBFTA now law, it’s natural that we turn our thoughts toward the future and ask ourselves, “Where do we go from here?” Fresh on the heels of a very successful Bahraini trade delegation visit to the United States—which yielded a number of promising discussions and netted a few partnership opportunities—the Embassy, the Office of the Economic Representative, the Economic Development Board of Bahrain and the American Chamber of Commerce in Bahrain are looking to form a similar group of American businesspeople for a high-level tour of Bahrain where we hope to continue the good work already done and to capitalize on the new era of economic freedom in the Middle East.
To continue reading please click here
