June 28th, 2009: Emaar Properties PJSC, the Middle East's largest real-estate developer, on Sunday said its merger with three Dubai companies would create a giant real estate group with an asset base of AED 194 billion (US$ 52.8 billion) and a debt of AED 13.4 billion, or roughly 7 % of the total assets. In a letter posted Sunday on the Dubai Financial Market's Web site, Chairman of Emaar Mohammed Al-Abbar said its proposed merger with Dubai Holding subsidiaries Dubai Properties LLC, Samar Dubai LLC and Tatweer LLC would take up to four months. "The proposed consolidation would create a robust and strategic asset base while joining the strengths" of the various companies," Abbar said.

The deal was first outlined on Saturday in a release by Emaar, marks a push to shore up a Dubai property market. Emaar plans to merge in four months. The merger would create a world-class group which would be ideally positioned to dynamically help shape and support the ongoing development of Dubai as a world-leading hub, he remarked. As of the 31 March, Emaar had a total book value of AED 68 billion and debt of AED 10 billion, or roughly 15% of the total assets, he noted. According to Abbar, the preliminary review of the three companies with whom the merger is proposed show that by the end of the 2008, they had a combined asset book value of AED129 billion and total external debt of roughly AED 3.4 billion , or about 2.7% of their asset value.

"Based on preliminary review, Dubai Properties, Sarna and Tatweer have a robust and strategic asset bese (attractive land bank) which wilt contribute positively to the consolidation, in addition, as at 31 December 2008. these three entities have a combined total assets book value of approximately AED 126 billion and total external debt of approximately AED 3.4 billion, which is 2.7% of the total book value of the assets of the three companies," he said.

The proposed consolidation, he said, comes within the resolute dedication to transform Dubai into a global city since construction and development is a primary engine of growth. Dubai will thus rise up to the current challenges with hallmark agility and responsiveness. The consolidation of these leading real estate entities will not only build on the remarkable achievements in Dubai during the last three decades, but more importantly, marks the start of a new chapter in the annals of real estate globally.

"It is currently estimated that the process of consolidation will take approximately 4 months to be completed, which will include due diligence of the entities, detailed valuation exercise, completion of legal documentation, agreement with regulatory authorities in respect of the structure and the process, and shareholders approval." "A tentative timeline for each of thfe aforementioned steps is given in the attached appendix There are detailed work streams for each of the above milestones. The overall aforementioned timelines are current estimates and are subject to change based on progress of the various milestones," Al-Abbar said.