Government-owned Dubai Properties said on Tuesday it plans to almost double its projects portfolio to over Dh1 trillion ($272.3 billion) and could announce a development in the Indian subcontinent this year.

The developers current project portfolio is worth Dh565 billion and 'with our five-year plan we are talking about reaching a trillion dirham figure,' chief executive Mohamed Binbrek told reporters.

'I am confident that hopefully by the end of the year we will announce a project overseas, hopefully something on the Indian subcontinent,' he said, adding that the firm is also looking at opportunities in North Africa and Eastern Europe.

Dubai Properties announced the launch for a Dh77 billion mixed-use Muden project in the Dubailand mega development on Monday and Dubai Assets Management, its assets and community management subsidiuary, on Tuesday.

Binbrek said that demand in the United Arab Emirates property market remains strong despite the global financial crisis.

'The fact that you have all these multi-billion dollar projects launched is a reflection of the strong economy that exists in this market,' he said. 'Real estate has gone up and it will continue to go up.'

Binbrek said that public developers had experienced delays but were confident that initial issues they faced will be overcome. 'We had been optimistic in terms of the timeframe of delivery but the hard reality has hit us. When we launch (projects) we will think twice before that commitment.'

Binbrek its funding had not been affected by the credit crisis. 'As a developer Dubai Properties has not had to borrow from financial institutions. It's not something on our horizon.'-Reuters