First Bahrain, a leading Kuwaiti real estate company, has returned to profit in 2010 with a net gain of KD84,851 ($307,933) compared to loss of KD2.41 million the previous year.

Announcing the results at its AGM in Kuwait, First Bahrain chairman Salah Ahmed Al-Wuhaib said despite the challenging environment, the company reported a net gain for the year, overcoming losses posted in 2009.

This improvement in performance was a direct result of the company’s success in leasing the units at its warehousing development, Majaal, which contributed to an overall increase of KD478,801 in the investment value of its properties, compared to a loss of KD2.1 million in the value of those properties during 2009', Al-Wuhaib added.

'The company began generating operating revenue from its delivered projects in 2010 and continued to reap valuable benefit from its consistent and conservative approach to the management of resources,' he noted.

By the end of 2010, First Bahrain, which operates out of Bahrain and Kuwait, had leased more than 70 per cent of the available industrial workspace at Majaal.

According to him, Majaal was conceived to fill a gap in the market for quality work and storage space in unit sizes which are accessible to and meet the requirements of Small to Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs).

'With its ideal location and unit sizes that meet the requirements of SME's, Majaal managed to attract 14 tenant companies across diverse range of sectors. Over 70 per cent  of the leasable space in the development's first phase has now been occupied,' Al-Wuhaib said.

Speaking on the future plans, Al-Wuhaib said, 'Moving ahead this year, we will focus on the expansion of the second phase of Majaal, which will more than double the size of the facility, offering a total of 270,000 sq ft of leasable space.

'We are also preparing to expand the Majaal SME-focused warehousing facilities into the Kingdom.We are in advance planning on this effort and we hope to be making major announcements about a partnership to facilitate this expansion soon,” Al-Wuhaib added.

First Bahrain, which was set up with a paid up capital of KD31.5 million, is strategically positioned to execute projects across the GCC, in accordance with the principles of Sharia.-TradeArabia News Service