GCC Investors Lured by $3 Billion Metropoliya Sustainable Project in Moscow

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(DUBAI, UAE) -- The deal was locked during the Cityscape Global conference and exhibition in Dubai last month, but it was made official today in Moscow where Metropoliya, a 1.6  million square meter sustainable development valued at over $3 billion is located. Metropoliya is part of the 2025 vision for Moscow's General Plan of Development.

"We were delighted with the response we received from regional investors," said Oleg Korol, CEO of Metropol Development responsible for the Project. GCC investors may have been looking at a recent report from CBRE, which estimated that the Russian property market would witness robust and consistent growth from 2012, the likely start of construction on the site.

Although Russia suffered during the global recession, especially from Q4 2008 to Q1 2009 when a barrel of oil was trading on average at less than $50, it still has immense economic clout, with gold and currency reserves in excess of $500 billion - third after China and Japan.

The latest Haver Analytics report has forecast positive GDP growth of 4.9 percent this year after negative growth of 7.9 percent last year.  Sergei Sobyanin, the new Mayor of Moscow, has vowed to cut red tape, create better conditions for investors, improve the city's congested roads, and boost education and health care. He had criticized the former city government for inefficiency and corruption. Korol said, "This type of progressive mayor will create an investor-friendly culture."

Metropol Development is one of the fastest growing real estate companies in Moscow with total projected and under construction real estate of approximately two million square meters. The market value of the assets under the Company's management is more than 1 billion US dollars.

Based on cutting edge Japanese sustainable technology from Nikken Sekkei of Japan, the huge Metropoliya project features 12 buildings connected by green public spaces. Mitsuo Nakamura, President and CEO of Nikken Sekkei, said, "Our sustainable design technology can reduce energy consumption by up to 60 percent. This is critical considering Moscow's extreme range of temperatures throughout the year, from minus 9 degrees centigrade to over 23 degrees centigrade."

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