BONYAN

The UAE’s mortgage market will leap from AED20 billion by the end of this year to reach AED64 billion over the next three years, according to a recent market study, with Shariah-compliant house financing making up more than 60 percent of this figure. Amid the country’s booming property investment sector, Bonyan International Investment Group (Holding) LLC, a major real estate company in Dubai, has announced it aims to leverage the favorable investment climate in the country, with plans of launching more projects that offer high and quick return on investment (ROI) to its growing number of regional and global clients. The mortgage market in the GCC at large has seen massive growth over the past year, as a result of the on-going regional real estate boom. As one of the fastest growing GCC economies, the UAE is perceived by global investors as the best market for capital gains growth, and has been identified as the only Gulf country to witness an increase in consumer confidence for the second half of this year. This can be attributed to the UAE’s pioneering move to allow foreigners to invest in local property, which created outstanding opportunities for world-class developers such as Bonyan to attract investors to the country. “Our plan of action in relation to the uptrend in the UAE’s mortgage market will be to expand our portfolio of high return and low risk projects by investing further into developing innovative concepts and forging strategic partnerships,” said Abdullah Atatreh, chairman, Bonyan International Investment Group (Holding) LLC.

DOW WATER

Dow Water Solutions, a business unit of the Dow Chemical Company, has said that its FILMTEC reverse osmosis (RO) membranes were installed at three wastewater reclamation and reuse facilities in conjunction with the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games. The 2008 Olympics, which ended in Beijing on Aug. 24, was the second time that Dow membrane technology helped manage water resources for the games as the technology was also deployed in 2000 during the Sydney Games. Beijing undertook massive projects to provide an adequate and safe water supply for the Olympic Games. In keeping with its commitment to organize a ‘green’ Olympics, three water reuse projects at Beijing employed more than 5,000 FILMTEC 8-inch diameter reverse osmosis (RO) membrane elements. The membranes helped treat 45,000 m3/day of water at the three sites — BeiXiaoHe Wastewater Treatment Plant, Beijing International Airport and the Beijing Economic- Technological Development Area. This helped the city realize its goal to reuse 50 percent of its water. In the Middle East, FILMTEC proven membrane technology helped meet a basic human need in areas with extremely dry conditions and limited fresh water sources. “Dow Water Solutions provides millions of people in the Middle East with a sustainable source of fresh water,” said Zuhair Allawi, commercial director for Dow Chemical India, Middle East & Africa (IMEA) GmbH. “Our innovative technology and best-in-class product portfolio offers an affordable solution to the region’s water shortage crisis,” he added.

FERRARI

Khalid Khashiggi is the first Saudi appointed as Ferrari ambassador and holds the special passport that comes with the title. It is a symbolic passport granted by Ferrari through its worldwide dealers for staff who successfully pass training courses in sales and after-sale services organized by Ferrari, and aims to elevate performance and efficiency of sales staff around the world, as well, to instill the spirit of competition among them to ensure highest level of services to clients. Khashiggi is one of the first Saudi youths to join Fast Auto Technic, Ferrari dealer in Saudi Arabia, where he joined them two years back and underwent several training courses in order to develop his sales skills, under the supervision of Mamdouh Khayyat, general manager of the company. “It was a turning point in my life when I joined Ferrari team, with the presence of engineer Mamdouh Khayyat who has long experience in sales and after-sales services, I gained a lot of experience which helped me to pass successfully all the training courses which I had undergone since joining Ferrari team,” Khashiggi said. Through the ongoing training courses, there will be many opportunities that will help Khashiggi to constantly be more familiar with the development of Ferrari technologies, and this honorary passport will enable him to be updated on all issues related to the famous Italian car manufacturer. “Getting this honorary passport is a dream that came true, and I do believe that many Saudis working for Ferrari dealer have this dream. I do wish that more and more Saudis receive this passport which will enable them to be more close to “Getting such honorary title will, for sure, motivate other staff to develop themselves and improve their performance,” Khayyat said.