“I cannot comment on when we intend to launch our education and healthcare plans. We are waiting for the necessary changes in the regulatory framework,” the chairman of Emaar Properties, Mohammad Ali Alabbar, told ET.

To get a foothold in the education sector, Emaar Properties had acquired Singapore-based education chain Raffles Campus last September. Since then, the company has expanded the business and Raffles Campus now has centres in Singapore, Vietnam, Indonesia, China, Middle East, North Africa and UAE. It runs nurseries, international schools, business schools and universities. “Education will be an important thrust area as far as our growth plans are concerned,” Mr Al-abbar said.

In the healthcare venture, the company has plans to roll out multi-specialty hospitals in various parts of the country. For Emaar MGF, diversification into education and healthcare will be in sync with the company’s core business of real estate. “We expect communities to come up around these two in future.

Proximity to good schools and hospitals would play a role in choosing a house,” said Mr Alabbar. Emaar MGF is awaiting a go-ahead from market regulator SEBI for listing its shares on the stock exchanges in India. “We will raise an estimated $ 1.7 billion through our initial public offering (IPO) in India. In the process, we will dilute 10% equity,” Mr Alabbar said.

According to Mr Alabbar, more than infusion of capital into the company, the IPO is important to bring in the mandatory discipline and transparency in the working of the company. “Nothing in the world is better than the discipline and transparency of a listed company,” he said.

For sprucing its presence in the country’s hospitality sector, the company is in talks with 3-4 prominent international hotel chains in the super-luxury segment and a couple of brands in the 4-star segment. The company already has a tie-up with Accor for budget hotels and JW Marriot and Intercontinental for 5-star properties. “We are developing hotels in 21 cities and we continue to look for new locations,” said Mr Alabbar.

The company is also planning an aggressive expansion in budget housing to reduce the entry point for home-buyers. In the last one year, the company has brought down the minimum price of its house from Rs 45 lakh to Rs 35 lakh. “Affordability is a key criteria. Even though margins offered by affordable homes are significantly lower, it has much higher volumes on offer,” Mr Alabbar said.

At present, Emaar MGF has projects in over 21 cities in India and has a landbank of about 12,500 acres. One of its most prestigious projects is the Commonwealth Games Village in East Delhi. The project is being developed on a Public Private Partnership and on completion of the games in 2010, the company will get to retain 66% of the project and the rest would be taken over by the Delhi government.

Source: The Economic Times