Arabtec seen winning AED7.4bn orders in 2010

Construction giant Arabtec Holding is expected to win contracts worth AED7.4 billion in 2010, according to a report by investment bank Shuaa Capital.

It said Arabtec had won contracts worth AED4.3bn so this year but cancellations amounted to AED1.1bn.

Abu Dhabi was the largest source of year-to-date awards, followed by Qatar, Dubai and the Levant, UAE daily Emirates Business reported on Tuesday.

Shuaa reduced Arabtec's revenue projections by 27.7 percent to AED7.04bn this year. The revenues are expected to increase to AED8.47bn next year and AED8.75bn in 2012.

It added that 72 percent of the company's contracts were based outside Dubai, which has seen construction slow significantly amid the impact of the global economic downturn.

"If new work keeps coming as fast as the first five months of this year, the company will most likely exceed estimates by a considerable margin – suggesting increased future earnings potential," said the report, cited by the paper.

The Shuaa study said it still had concerns about Arabtec's AED10bn Okhta Centre in St Petersburg and has excluded it from projections and valuations.

It added that about 60 percent of the company's backlog comes from Abu Dhabi, Qatar and Saudi Arabia.