Dubai World Map

It’s month old news, but still very interesting… to me.

The Dubai World Map Project has been cancelled! Or as the Sheikh states; ‘put on hold’.

This multi-billion dollar project was set to transform Dubai’s coast and create a paradise fit for kings (and the extremely wealthy).
This, however has become at the very least a shipping hazard; a sand and water wasteland. The only island with any infrastructure is the Sheikh’s.

The one island that actually has infrastructure; the Sheikh's.

It was planned that the rich would buy an island out of the 300 that were to make up a map of the world.
Ships brought sand and boulders to build this monumental structure only to have it sit and rot. A breakwater was built to protect the lagoons, that are now disjointed desolate sand clumps.

Dubai construction company, Nakheel claims that it has completed 95% of the project. The island appear to be still on the market, after it was announced just yesterday that only four remain. The sale of the islands are by invitation only!

For instance, the island of Ireland was bought by 3 Irish businessmen who planned to transform their island into rolling hills with traditional island pubs. This has yet to go ahead, and it has been reported that one of those businessmen has since committed suicide.

Is this the end for Dubai’s building boom? Projects such as the half-mile high tower, announced only last year, have been canceled.
The cityscape expo, held annually, is downplaying much of Dubai’s proposed infrastructure.

According to the ‘San Fransisco Chronicle’; “no-one in Dubai is announcing to be number 1 anymore. There’s a sense that Dubai sees that they need to tone it down.”

Many of the projects were built on borrowed money or from the projected profits of the sale of oil.

Dubai property prices have plummeted 50% over the past year after it fell victim to the credit crunch. Nakheel has had to sack hundreds of its workers, downscale it’s existing projects and cancel many in planning.

Just look at the amount of reclaimed land

It will be very interesting to see just what exactly happens to Dubai over the coming years.

Will Dubailand go ahead? A theme park bigger than all the Disneyland and DisneyWorld parks put together. To be built on an area of 278km square or 3 billion square foot. It’s is proposed to include a space museum containing space shuttles and rockets and a prehistoric park using the best technology known to take you back to the time of the dinosaurs. It has so far collected $6 billion of investments and is expected to cost a total of $20 billion. It is to be built in four stages with extensions from there. It will be quite amazing.

You can see in the background a replica of Hong Kong, London, Taiwan and Shanghai.

Will the Universe go ahead? (Unlikely) This project, similar to The World, was to be made of sand islands off Dubai’s waterfront in the layout of the solar system; with planets, the sun and the moon. (Nakheel is said to head up this project, so will see what happens there)