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EXCLUSIVE: 'No chance I will do a hit and run' – ACI boss
ACI Real Estate chief Robin Lohmann has vowed there is “no chance I will do a hit and run,” following allegations over investors’ cash.
The German developer, in an interview with Arabian Business published on Sunday, added: “You know why? Because I haven’t even collected the money I have invested and spent here. I’m not going ahead and losing AED500m ($136.1m), it’s not the way.”
Managing director Lohmann has faced a storm of criticism in recent weeks over delays to his sports branded towers, and also payments that were due to investors in March.
However, citing the lack of finance to develop projects that he had already sold, he said investors would have to be more patient.
“What investors don’t understand is that I have not sold anything for the last seven months. Listen, if you bought Emaar stock for AED 20 and it went to AED 2, you don’t go to Mohammed Alabbar and say ‘I want my money back’.”
In the interview, he also complained that the Dubai Land Department has recently tightened certain laws, prohibiting developers from single-handedly terminating investor contracts.
The newly introduced Law 9, Lohmann claimed, means developers now have to send three payment reminders and a legal notice to an investor who has defaulted, before handing over documents to RERA.
It is RERA who then decides whether to cancel the contract, he told Arabian Business.
He added: “We do not have the strength any more to sit with the investors and to push them for payments. Some of the investors don’t consider payment reminders and legal notices anymore. They wait to receive the final payment reminder from RERA, which grants them another thirty days to make their overdue payments.
“Since all of our projects have construction-linked payment plans, we have to work very closely with our contractors to match the necessary cash flow.”
Click here to read the full Robin Lohmann interview
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Comments 1-7 of 7
Posted by lUIGI, verona, italy on 13 July 2009 at 11:54 UAE time
Pavarotti tower is a mirror, its name was Blue Moon Tower as still registerd at rera,i think it will never been completed. its sold by italian company.....not serious
Posted by Alan G on 13 July 2009 at 03:46 UAE time
To be a little bit fair, I personally did visit the busniess bay sites only a few days ago (Schumacher Business Avenue) and there was construction happening (however light) so lets not allow our personal anger cloud facts. With investments in Business Bay I felt the best way to judge progress is to personally visit - for anyone with investments anywhere in UAE this is the only way of really knowing if your developer is likely to deliver or not
Posted by Jebel Ali Baba, Dubai, United Arab Emirates on 12 July 2009 at 13:07 UAE time
If Arabian Business reporter would make the effort to visit the construction sites mentioned, they would easily find out what is happening here. There maybe was an intention to finalize these projects a year ago. But now they are on a complete hold. No way that there is a hand-over in the time promised.
Lohmann has lost all his credibility. And this is all he had in the first place.
Posted by shakir on 12 July 2009 at 12:58 UAE time
After knowing more about Pavarotti Tower, I would like to withdraw my earlier comments about it. This sounds like an exciting project on Palm Jebel Ali and I wish it the best of luck.
Posted by shakir on 12 July 2009 at 11:21 UAE time
Who wants to live in a Boris Becker Tower, anyway? I remember I was very offended seeing billboards of Boris Becker, with crossed arms, smiling at me. I wouldn't touch it with a barge pole. Now there is a Pavarotti Tower. Pavarotti is great. But Pavarotti Tower, no thanks.
Posted by Original Joe, Dubai on 12 July 2009 at 11:03 UAE time
Can AB please move on to another developer and stop giving this guy all the headlines? I am sick of hearing about Lohmann. Until he completes a building and hands it over he goes into the same pile as the other developers who have collected money with nothing to show for it but empty construction sites.
Posted by Irshad, Dubai, UAE on 12 July 2009 at 10:37 UAE time
This is totally false bravado. The guy has already done the "hit" on investors, now the government must make sure he doesn't follow that up with the "run".