Dubai: The Initial Public Offering (IPO) of Dubai Parks & Resorts, a unit of government-owned Meraas Holding, has received robust response from institutional and retail investors and the company is on track for project delivery in October 2016, its chief executive told Gulf News.

“We can say that today the institutional tranche and the retail tranche subscription have been good, very very good. Looking at the product itself it is something that Dubai needs and that’s the gap we are filling. We have a very good feedback from the market. They have received the IPO very well,” said Raed Al Nuaimi, chief executive officer of Dubai Parks and Resorts said in an exclusive interview.

The company is planning to raise Dh2.53 billion through an IPO, which closed on November 27 for institutional investors and will shut on November 30 for retail investors. The company plans to list on the Dubai Financial Market on December 10.

Dubai’s benchmark share index is among the best performing globally after rising 36 per cent this year, prompting share sales by companies such as Emaar Properties PJSC, which offered stock in a malls unit that operates one of the largest shopping centres in the world.

“The time is good. We have seen activity that is happening in the IPO market and it’s a good time to enter into it,” said Al Nuaimi.

On November 11, the company said Goldman Sachs Group arranged a Dh4.2 billion loan to fund the development of the theme park.

The deal was underwritten by the New York-based bank, Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank PJSC, Commercial Bank International PSC, Emirates NBD PJSC, and Noor Bank.

“At the end of IPO, this will be a fully funded project. So there is no other way we are looking to fund. We will be a fully funded project by the close of the IPO,” he added.

National pride

The first phase of Dubai Parks & Resorts project comprises three theme parks: Motiongate Dubai, Bollywood Parks Dubai, and Legoland Dubai. The project is due to be completed before the end of the third quarter of 2016, with 6.7 million visitors expected the following year, the company said.

The company is on track to complete the project by October 2016, and about 35 per cent of the infrastructure works is already complete.

“From the project perspective schedule we are very well on schedule. We are on track for the opening of October 2016. We hired the best time in the world from the theme park industry and Dubai local knowledge industry, so we get the best outcome,” he added.

“I consider it as a national product because it’s an industry that we are creating for Dubai and the region, and we would like the UAE nationals and people who live in this country are proud of the national product,” he said.