Al-Habtoor Group has appointed UK-based consultant Atkins to provide full multidisciplinary design services for three luxury residential towers and a retail podium as part of the Al-Habtoor City project in Dubai.

Atkins will deliver architectural, structural, MEP and ground engineering design for the project, which comprises two 75-storey residential towers and a third 52-storey tower, which will together house up to 1,460 apartments and 11 penthouses.

Each penthouse will include its own private sky garden and swimming pool, while the two taller blocks will feature a four-storey penthouse incorporating more than 3,000 square metres of living space.

Atkins said it has completed the concept design stage and is undertaking detailed design for the project, with enabling works already under way. The project, which is next to Sheikh Zayed Road and near the planned Dubai Water Canal, is due for completion in 2015.

“This will be a landmark development for Al-Habtoor,” said Shaun Killa, Atkins’ director of architecture. “Its vision is to set new standards in luxury development, while ensuring the project is both environmentally sustainable and commercially viable.”

Atkins recently announced a decline in profits for its Middle East operations, primarily due to ongoing project delays and restructuring activities in Bahrain and Kuwait.

Atkins has been operating in the region since the 1970s, with much of its activity in the region coming from its building design and architecture practice. But since the Gulf real estate crash in 2009, the company has broadened its portfolio in the region to include civil engineering and infrastructure projects, with rail projects a particular focus.

In October, the company was selected to work as the lead engineering consultant for one of the international consortiums working on the Riyadh Metro project.