Blue City rescue seen as boost for Oman - The National Newspaper

An Abu Dhabi investment company’s acquisition of the senior debt of the largest property development in Oman is likely to boost the country’s property economy, analysts say.

Blue City was envisioned as a US$20 billion (Dh73.46bn) tourism centre about an hour from Muscat on the Indian Ocean. The project slowed when the financial crisis hit in 2008 and is now effectively controlled by Essdar Capital, a company backed by two members of the Abu Dhabi Royal Family.

“Now that there is a new company in control, it will allow for a lot quicker decision making about moving the project forward,” said Ian Gladwin, the Oman-based regional director of the property consultancy Cluttons. “It’s vitally important that the project is seen to progress. It can only be good for the real estate market of Oman.”