Nakheel Building 3 Bridges from Mainland to Palm Deira

---

(DUBAI, UAE) - As work continues on Palm Jumeirah and its other major developments in Dubai, Nakheel is building the first of three bridges to connect the mainland with Palm Deira, another project involving manmade islands positioned to form a giant palm.

The three 12-lane bridges will cost $545 million. Designed by Parsons Transportation Group, the bridges are all 1000 meters long. Excavation for the second bridge has begun, and work on the third is expected to begin soon.

At the launch of the bridge project last week, Abdulla Bin Sulayem, Operations Director of Palm Deira, Nakheel, said, "We congratulate Parsons Group on completing the design work on the Palm Deira bridges to the highest specifications. This is a huge project and will include the installation of 44 bridges [within the islands] and a network of modern roads, intersections and metro tunnels."

According to James R. Shabelle, President, Parsons Transportation Group, "the three bridges will not only facilitate residents' movement from the Palm Deira to other parts of the emirates, but will also be an essential connection for water, telecommunications and electricity services."

International architects, designers, and consultants are working with the Roads and Transport Authority of Dubai to supervise infrastructure projects on Palm Deira.  Eventually, the infrastructure network at Palm Deira will connect the Central Deira islands with Deira North island and the Deira interface island for a total area of 15 million square meters.

Nakheel is one of the world's largest privately held real estate developers.  Nakheel's Dubai portfolio includes Palm Jumeirah, Palm Jebel Ali, Palm Deira, The World, Waterfront, The Universe, Nakheel Harbour & Tower, Jumeirah Islands, Jumeirah Village, Jumeirah Park, Jumeirah Heights, The Gardens, Discovery Gardens, Ibn Battuta Mall, Al Furjan, International City and Dragon Mart.

Nakheel is part of Dubai World, one of the world's largest holding companies that supervises businesses and projects for the Dubai Government in more than 100 countries across five continents.