Local property developer Nakheellaunched on 24 November its largest real estate development to date, the Palm Deira. Located on the Deira corniche, it will have an area of more than 80 square kilometres, making it larger than Manhattan.

Investor demand from across the globe, especially for palm villas, convinced the Dubai authorities to opt for a structure three times the size of the original Palm Jumeirah. The development will house 8,000 villas.

The new Palm will be 14 kilometres long and 8.5 kilometres wide. The crescent will run for 21 kilometres and consist of 12 districts and six water inlets. Compared to the other palms' 17 fronds, Palm Deira will comprise 41 fronds varying in length. The project will add 400 kilometres of extra shoreline to Dubai.

The dredging and reclamation package will be one of the largest ever. Palm Deira will require up to 1,000 million cubic metres of sand and rock, roughly 12 times the size of Palm Jumeirah. The appointment of a dredging contractor is imminent (MEED 8:10:04).

Infrastructure works will include local bridges and roads and the implementation of various utility systems. The project will also include hotels, shopping malls and associated leisure facilities. Although no value has been released, the scale of work suggests the scheme could cost as much as $4,000 million-5,000 million.

Located off one of Dubai's busiest districts, the greatest challenge on Palm Deira may well prove to be traffic management and providing efficient access to the island.

The Palm Deira will be the third man-made, palm tree-shaped island in Dubai. Infrastructure work on Palm Jumeirah is already in full swing and is scheduled to be complete in 2006. Reclamation work on Palm Jebel Ali is over 50 per cent complete.