Dubai CommerCity sees strong demand for office space

Dubai CommerCity (DCC), the first dedicated e-commerce free zone in the Middle East, North Africa and South Asia region, is witnessing strong demand for office space with a large chunk already leased out, a senior official said on Wednesday.

“The demand for offices is absolutely amazing. We have leased out 65 per cent of the current leasable area, and we see greater demand coming up. The second phase is one of our office buildings, Cluster A, which will bring us a total of six new buildings. The entire project is estimated to be around 12 office buildings in addition to the social cluster, which includes retail area and logistics area,” said Rashed Al Mulla, senior director, new corporate identity at Dubai CommerCity.

Al Mulla was speaking on the sidelines of a press conference which was held to unveil the new corporate identity of the free zone as it pivots its strategic direction from e-commerce to digital commerce. In addition, it also signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with strategic partners Emirates NBD bank, Dubai Digital Authority and Telecommunications and Digital Government Regulatory Authority (TDRA).

Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, chairman of Dubai Integrated Economic Zones Authority (DIEZ), and Dr Mohammed Al Zarooni, executive chairman of DIEZ, also attended the press conference on Wednesday.

Dubai CommerCity has been built over an area of 2.1 million square feet at a cost of Dh3.2 billion to provide support to new and existing digital commerce companies in the Middle East, North Africa, and South Asia.

Al Mulla revealed that 172 companies have registered with CommerceCity, including 10 per cent of them are multinationals.

“We are finding it very hard to keep up with the demand for the logistics. We are technically now fully sold out in terms of our logistics. However, we are building additional infrastructure in the logistics area. It would be ready by October,” he said.

Al Mulla said the free zone also facilitates Golden Visa for eligible investors and candidates of the free zones.

Sheikh Ahmed said: “The strategic transformation we are witnessing today in Dubai CommerCity’s shift towards digital commerce comes in line with the strategic economic directives and plans of Dubai and the UAE.”

“The emirate plays a leading role in shaping and building the future. It has established its position as an innovation hub and a driver for business development, expansion and integration in the global supply chain using future technology. This supports achieving the objectives of the Digital Economy Strategy through enhancing the digital economy’s contribution to the UAE’s GDP for at least the next ten years,” he said.

ALSO READ:

• Best place to work: 7 UAE firms make it to top 10 list in Middle East

• Salik IPO: Top Dubai official lists out 3 reasons why you should invest in road toll operator

Dr Mohammed Al Zarooni said the free zone will, directly and indirectly, impact the companies’ financial results, operations, and revenues by providing an ecosystem that promotes innovation, adaptability, and flexibility to enhance business development.

- waheedabbas@khaleejtimes.com

• Dubai