Local real estate firm Arabia Group for Development and Urban Progress is hoping to begin implementing its Sinai touristic project by the end of 2015, the company's chairman Tarek Shoukry told Daily News Egypt. Shoukry highlighted, however, that the implementation process highly depends on gaining security in the area. "The company has finished the designing process with the needed landscape and utilities," the company's chairman said. In April 2014, Shouky first discussed the project with Daily News Egypt, saying that around "80% of the project's plans and approvals have been finalised". He added that the company will begin work on the "huge" tourism project in mid 2015. Shoukry refused to disclose the project's volume of investments, saying that it is too soon to announce and it is constantly varying. He also stated that it is too soon to predict the client's demand for such project. The project will be implemented on 900,000sqm of land and will include 2,500 residential units and a 250-room hotel. One of the other projects the company is currently working on is Galleria Moon Valley, which was launched in 2013. Shoukry said that the project will be continued in 2015. Two phases were launched last year (with 300 housing units each); two others are to be open for reservation this year, and the final three stages will launch and open for reservation in 2016. All the units of the project's first phase have been sold, whereas only half of the units in the second phase were sold. According to Shoukry, only 150 units, or half the second phase, were offered for reservation, and the rest will be offered this year. Concerning the prices that were previously issued last January, Shoukry stated that they started at low rates, where they began their offering at EGP 5,000 per metre. This year, however, prices have been raised to reach around EGP 8,000 per metre for apartments. He said that prices for properties have generally increased in late 2014, due to a rise in the prices of building materials, as well as the high prices of lands offered in auctions. Arabia Group has been in the market for 25 years, and is a property developer in Egypt, Austria and Dubai. The group launched other luxury property projects including "Moon Valley 2" twin houses, as well as "Arabia" in New Cairo.
