Arabtec, Dubai’s biggest contractor and the firm that built the Burj Khalifa, the world’s tallest tower, has agreed to sell a 70% stake to an Abu Dhabi investment fund for £1.1bn

The move follows Abu Dhabi’s £6.2bn bail-out of Dubai in December, which came after the state-owned company Dubai World, which owns developers Nakheel and Limitless, said it would seek to freeze repayments on its $26bn (£16bn) debt pile.

Chet Riley, an analyst at Nomura, said: “Dubai has received support, but it is now time to pay the piper.”

Although Dubai does not hold shares in Arabtec, it is the contractor’s biggest debtor and Riley said he assumed it would now be required to “make good on its contractual payment obligations”.

Topics