More than 1.5 million cubic metres of earth – enough to fill 600 Olympic-size swimming pools – has been excavated for the Arabian Canal, the 75km man-made waterway designed and managed by Limitless.
Pilot excavation work on the US$11 billion project has left a giant hole which, at 700 metres long, 200 metres wide and up to 45 metres deep, is big enough to hold nearly 20 A380 Airbuses or eight of the world’s largest cruise ships.
Excavated earth – amounting to one billion cubic metres – will be used to form new landscapes along the canal, including mountains up to 200 metres high, providing views of the waterway and creating new land on which to build hillside villages.
Limitless is using the world’s most sophisticated camera and video technology to monitor land changes throughout the excavation, which began in December and will continue for the next four years. Its Goematics Information Systems team carries out weekly aerial mapping surveys from a helicopter up to 600 metres above ground, and will soon be tracking progress at ground level with new laser scanning equipment mounted on top of a 4-wheel drive vehicle.
Saeed Ahmed Saeed, CEO of Limitless, said: “The world is watching as the Arabian Canal takes shape. The project will bring life into the desert, creating a landmark destination for Dubai’s residents and visitors in the form of a navigable waterway and a balanced, sustainable canal-side city for more than 1.5 million people.”
Limitless LLC, a Dubai World company, is an integrated global real estate developer across all market segments, delivering distinctive, sustainable developments. Established in July 2005 and built upon the philosophy of ‘delivering distinction’, Limitless has three specific areas of expertise: master planning large urban communities, waterfront development and the implementation of large scale balanced projects. Limitless website: www.limitless.ae
Limitless currently has nine global projects – worth more than US$100 billion – in seven countries, with more to come in Europe, North Africa, the Middle East, Asia and the Far East. They are:
Malaysia International Halal Park, Selangor State, Malaysia: The world’s first fully-integrated Halal centre and one of two projects for Limitless in Malaysia, this 1115 hectare complex includes homes for 200,000 people, food manufacturing plants, training and research centres, offices, entertainment and retail facilities
Puteri Harbour, Malaysia: US$450 million, 44 hectare development of landed waterfront homes – with individual berthing – and high-end condominiums. A 60-40 joint venture with UEM Land, this will be the country’s first luxury waterfront enclave
Halong Star, Halong Bay, Vietnam: US$220 million, 125 hectare mixed-use development with residential units, hotels, and education, cultural and recreational facilities, overlooking Halong Bay, a UNESCO-sanctioned world heritage site
Limitless Towers, Amman, Jordan: US$300 million, 200 metre residential twin towers that will be the tallest buildings in Jordan. Towers will be connected by the world’s highest suspended swimming pool, 125 metres above Amman. First ‘green’ building in the country, with 500 luxury apartments as well as a retail, entertainment and leisure plaza
Moscow, Russia: 113 hectare development near Moscow, with 4,500 homes as well as schools, retail and commercial elements. The project is a 50-50 joint venture with leading Russian developer RDI, and will accommodate around 12,000 people
Al Wasl, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia: US$12 billion, 1,400 hectare mixed-use development near Riyadh, including 60,000 homes as well as mosques, educational facilities, offices, shopping malls and hotels
Arabian Canal, Dubai, UAE: US$11 billion, 75 km man-made waterway – the biggest and most complex civil engineering project ever undertaken in the Middle East. Limitless is also master planning a US$50 billion, 20,000 hectare canalside ‘city’ as part of the project
Bidadi, Bangalore, India: US$12 billion, 4,000 hectare mixed-use development, including 1,000 hectares of office/commercial space, near Bangalore. The first of five new towns planned by the Government for the outskirts of the city, Bidadi will house up to 750,000 people
Downtown Jebel Ali, Dubai, UAE: US$13 billion, 200 hectare sustainable, mixed-use development consisting of four quarters, each with its own iconic, individually-themed plaza. Downtown Jebel Ali will have nearly 330 buildings, including 237 residential towers
