Dubai Investments Real Estate Company (DIRC), a subsidiary of publicly- listed Dubai Investments, is planning to re-launch the Dh2-billion Mirdiff Hills project and develop a five-star hotel in Dubai Maritime City, Emirates 24|7 can reveal.

“We are thinking of launching phase one of the Mirdiff Hills project since designs are already approved by the authorities.

“We are also studying plans to build a 5-star hotel in Maritime City, where we have do own a plot,” revealed Obaid Mohammed Al Salami, General Manager, DIRC.

However, he refused to give a timeframe on when these projects would start.

Mirdiff Hills, which is registered with the Dubai Land Department, is the only freehold development in Mirdiff. The mixed-use development, comprises 680 apartments, 380 offices and 129 retail outlets.

In July 2009, Khaled Kalban, Managing Director and CEO, Dubai Investments, had told this website that the Mirdiff Hills project was on hold and investors were refunded in full.

In December 2011, Dubai Maritime City had announced that six projects will be carried out by six developers in Dh2.5 billion, 121-hectare business district development, with work expected to begin on sit by the end of 2012.

Of late, recovery in the Dubai realty sphere has driven a number of developers to launch new or re-launch their old, approved projects.

Nakheel and Emaar Properties are leading the bunch, having launched two new projects, while Pacific Venture, as reported by Emirates 24|7 last month, became the first company to acquire two projects in Jumeirah Village under the Dubai Land Department’s Tanmia scheme.

Tanmia is an initiative which aims to restart stalled project though public-private partnership.

Over 100 projects are currently being reviewed under the scheme.

Al Salami believes that the Dubai property market has finally bottomed out and prices are stabilising.

“The market volatility is over. The market is stabilising and will gradually go up,” he stated.

DIRC has over 2,250 apartments, 100 warehouses, two office building and more than 3,000 labour-camp rooms under its management.

Jones Lang LaSalle (JLL), a global property consultancy, said on Sunday that the residential market in Dubai “looks to have bottomed out.”

It said villa prices registered an increase of 21 per cent, while apartments remained flat, year-on-year, while maintaining a buoyant view on the realty market, it added that rents and prices will continue their upward trend during the remaining of 2012.