Bahrain-based Gulf Finance House (GFH) said its flagship project in Morocco, Royal Ranches Marrakech (RRM), was on track with about 45 per cent of the infrastructure work being completed.

The announcement was made by a visiting GFH delegation after it toured the existing infrastructure at the project site in Morocco.

The team comprising GFH board members was received by senior representatives from the project’s main contractor, STAM.

Royal Ranches Marrakech, which comprises four districts including equestrian, residential, leisure and tourist areas, covers approximately 380 hectares located in the foothills of the Atlas Mountains.

The design draws upon numerous aspects of Moroccan culture and history, delivering a unique equestrian experience for enthusiasts worldwide.

The development will also include an equestrian school with certified instructors, a professional 18-hole golf course with spectacular views of the Atlas Mountains, a 5-star hotel and 6-star boutique hotel, luxury residential units and a shopping area where winding streets will recall a traditional Moroccan souk.

RRM is now working on a revised time schedule for the completion of the remaining infrastructure work necessary and focusing on attracting investors and developers to commence development of the readily available parcels of land, said the GFH officials.

Commenting on the progress, Esam Janahi, the president of RRM and executive chairman of GFH said: 'We are very pleased with the progress that we have seen today, and STAM, as our main contractor has certainly lived up to our expectations.'

'We anticipate further steady progress over the coming months as we now focus on revising our time schedule for completion and restructuring the company’s board of directors,' he noted.

'Morocco has seen significant growth over the past few years in the services and tourism sectors, and the government has encouraged this with stronger Foreign Direct Investment and domestic policies and incentives all in support of open trade.'

'The government of Morocco’s commitment to grow tourism makes it the ideal location for a development of the scope of Royal Ranches Marrakech,' said Janahi.

Dr Ahmed Al Mutawa, GFH vice chairman pointed out that Morocco had recently inked a deal with a number of GCC states to create a new Moroccan entity.

'It will focus on the development of new tourism resorts in Morocco which proves that this project is on the right track. I am thrilled to be personally witnessing the impressive progress of this unique and exciting development and look forward to my involvement in this challenging project as cooperation between the Moroccan and Gulf economies continues,' he noted.

“GFH has a proven track record in attracting developers to invest in mega projects enabling us to identify potential investors and developers for this project, be it from the gulf or North Africa, or from within Morocco itself,” he added.

Louis Raymond Buadrand, the president of STAM, said, 'Our expertise and reputation in the Moroccan development sector has been built through years of work in the agricultural, roads and tourism sectors.'

“RRM has reached a very promising stage so far with 45 per cent of the infrastructure work completed. It now has parcels of land ready to be developed vertically by investors while we work in parallel to complete the infrastructure work on the other land parcels,' he stated.

'We are committed to adding value to this project with profitable and timely completion of the Royal Ranches Marrakech development,' Buadrand added.-TradeArabia News Service