The developer of the world's first Formula One theme park said on Sunday that completion of the project has been pushed back a year to 2010 because of a lack of funding.
Simon Azzam, the chief executive of Union Properties, the company building the Formula One theme park, called F1-X, in Dubai's Motor City, said construction of the $460 million project stopped because the banks were no longer willing to lend money.
“Due to the financial crisis and lack of liquidity from the banks, we have no choice but to postpone the project until 2010,'' Azzam told The Associated Press in a phone interview on Sunday.
Azzam said after three years of construction, half the theme park has been built and the rides are ready to be installed. He said the only chance for the park to open on time would be to get funding immediately.
“We can still open at the end of 2009, but it is critical to get finances within weeks rather than months,'' said Azzam. “This park is the first of its kind in the world and it is of strategic importance to Dubai and the UAE.''
An estimated 25 per cent of more than 800 development projects in Dubai have been suspended due to the economic crisis, according to Dubai's Real Estate Regulatory Authority.
Dubai's Formula One theme park is one of five projects in Motor City, which also includes residential areas and office towers that Azzam said will be completed on time. Motor City includes the Dubai Autodrome.
Union Properties was established as a private company in 1985. It was floated on the UAE stock market in 1993.
