Arabtec results reveal US$ 627 million loss

Dubai-based construction company Arabtec – which helped build the Burj Khalifa – has released its financial results for 2015, revealing a loss of US$ 626 million.

In its report, the company – which is backed by Abu Dhabi’s state-run Aabar Investments – said revenues for the year was also 12% down on 2014.

Arabtec cited the “continuing difficult environment…and the challenging economic backdrop” among its reasons for the poor performance, but also admitted a number of poorly performing projects had adversely affected its bottom line.

In 2014, Arabtec signed a US$ 40 billion deal to build a million affordable homes in Dubai – a project which has been beset by confusion and stoppages. In the same year, the company’s CEO unexpectedly departed.

Acting CEO, Saeed Al Mehairbi, said the company was now pursuing “…a more selective approach to project tendering, ensuring new projects deliver appropriate returns”.

Last month, Arabtec moved forward with two major new projects: a US$ 544 million development of 1,000 villas on Yas Island; and a US$ 1.1 billion modernisation of Bahrain International Airport.