Local developer Emaar is considering plans for a roller coaster ride at the shopping mall it is building at Dubai Hills.

The proposed plans involve installing a ride connected to the mall on an adjacent plot of land. According to sources close to the project different types of ride have been considered and a final decision has not been made.

Emaar say that details will be announced once a decision has been made: “No decision has been made regarding the same. We will announce details as and when they are finalised.”

Construction work on the mall is well advanced. In June this year Emaar said:

"With a workforce of about 5,000 on site, and more than 8.8 million manhours achieved already, about 60 per cent of the mall’s structure has been completed. Emaar Development has also commenced the structural steel work of an 18-screen cineplex as well as the first glass skylight. Mockup work for facades, skylights, shopfronts, washrooms and the finishes has also commenced."

Local contractor Alec started working on the estimated AED2.8bn ($763m) construction contract in early 2017. Once completed, Emaar says the mall will have a gross leasable area of more than 2 million square feet and more than 750 retail outlets, including a 65,000-square-foot hypermarket.

The mall will also have its own solar power plant. The local Alec Energy was appointed earlier this year to design and build a 6.5MW captive solar plant that will be commissioned in time for the mall opening. The solar project will mean a saving of 4,620,000kg of CO2 (carbon dioxide) every year.

The mall is part of the larger Dubai Hills estate that Emaar is developing in joint venture with another local developer Meraas.

The scheme covers an area of 11 million square metres and includes gated villa communities, a commercial centre and high-end retail centres, as well as low-rise and mid-rise residences, hotels and serviced hotel apartments. There will also be schools, clinics, mosques and an 18-hole golf course.

For access, The Roads and Transport Authority has received bids for the contract to build road interchange connecting Dubai Hills with the rest of the development. The lowest bidder is Beijing-based China State Construction Engineering Corporation (CSCEC) with a price of AED774m.