12.5-hectare Citystars Sharm El Sheikh lagoon officially recognised as
largest manmade body of water in the world; company’s Egypt portfolio of four
active projects implementing patented technology to transform desert
environments and create new high-end coastal resort communities
Dubai, 08 December 2015. Crystal Lagoons Corp., the patented technology developer of giant
crystalline lagoons, has added a second Guinness World
Record to its growing list of global accolades, with the company’s 12.5-hectare
Sharm El Sheikh manmade lagoon project officially named largest in the world.
This breaks the company’s
own previous record, with its eight-hectare San Alfonso del Mar lagoon in Chile
the Guinness World Record holder since 2007.
Located inland from
the renowned Red Sea resort in the desert hinterland, the US$5.5 million lagoon
is the centerpiece of the US$500 million Citystars Sharm El Sheikh tourism
development being developed by Egypt’s Sharbatly family.
The 750-hectare
mixed-use community will feature 12 lagoons in total, upon completion,
utilising 100 hectares of salt water sourced from underground aquifers. The
lagoons will be a major leisure attraction for visitors and residents occupying
the 30,000 planned residential units, along with hotels, golf courses, marinas,
museums and a shopping mall.
‘What is truly unique
about this project is not only its desert setting but the fact that, thanks to
our technological innovation, we are able to take water that is not being used
elsewhere, and make it a sustainable feature within a traditionally arid desert
landscape, which adds tangible real estate value to the development,” said Carlos
Salas, Regional Director Middle East, Crystal Lagoons.
“This is our first mixed-use project anywhere in the world where the
technology will be used both for recreational purposes as well as for water
desalination, thereby providing clean, fresh water for the entire 750-hectare
community,” he added.
Crystal Lagoons has a total of
four active projects in Egypt, including the CityStars Sharm El Sheikh lagoon,
its regional flagship.
Building on the success of its
first Middle East – and Egypt – project, the company is also developing a
second lagoon for Sharm el Sheikh. The 2.7-hectare Radamis Lagoon will be the glittering
turquoise centerpiece for a 2,500-room, three-hotel mixed-use development.
Earlier this year, Crystal
Lagoons announced two new Egypt initiatives – Swanlake North Coast and Porto
Lagoons, both of which are located on the country’s northern Mediterranean
coast, close to Alexandria.
The high-end US$200
million Swanlake North Coast project that targets second home investors, is under
development by Hassan Allam properties, one of Egypt’s leading luxury residential
developers.
Three lagoons
covering over 6.1 hectares will be a central feature of the landscaped
community, which will also encompass upscale
residential villas, twin villas, chalets and a boutique hotel.
The
fourth project in Crystal Lagoons’ Egypt portfolio is the Porto Group-developed
US$345 million, 150-hectare mixed-use Porto Golf Marina.
A
2.4-hectare crystalline lagoon will complement an exciting collection of
restaurants and 19 residential buildings with a total of 2,126 apartments under
the Porto Lagoons banner. An 18-hole golf course is also being developed,
designed by award winning American golf course architect, Raymond Hearn.
To date,
Crystal Lagoons has an active portfolio of over 40 projects spread across the
Middle East and North Africa, in key locations including Jordan, Saudi Arabia
and the UAE, with a total of 300 projects worldwide, located in 60
countries.
“The Middle East and
North Africa region represents a great opportunity for Crystal Lagoons at a
time when investment in tourism infrastructure continues to grow. Our portfolio
of projects is helping raise awareness and interest for major hubs in the
region and our significant Egypt presence reflects the value that delivering a
lagoon project can bring to emblematic leisure destinations across the MENA
region,” said Salas.
