TechnoPark, the science and technology facilitator of Economic Zones World announced that it has signed a land lease agreement with First Sea Mining Factory LLC to be built in TechnoPark

The First Sea Mining Factory uses cutting-edge technology from I.E.S. Germany and will implement advanced one-of-its kind Seawater Brines Recycling Technology that will completely eliminate the harmful pollution caused by brine discharges from Seawater Desalination Plants.

The establishment of the new company is a landmark step towards ecological preservation of UAE's marine seawater resources and its fishing industry.

Dubai has created a committee to examine the feasibility of making a formal bid to host the 2020 Olympic and Paralympics Games.

The potential Olympic bid is part of a greater developmental initiative called ‘Dubai 2020’ – a master plan for propelling the wealthy city into the international arena. 

The exploratory committee will be spearheaded by Sheik Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, and it will also look into the possibility of hosting the World Expo in 2020. 

Sharm al-Sheikh/Berlin - Abu Dhabi will host the global headquarters of the International Renewable Energy Association (IRENA), it was decided Monday.

The decision was announced at the IRENA meeting at the Egyptian resort city of Sharm al-Sheikh.

While IRENA's headquarters will be in the United Arab Emirates capital, the former West German capital Bonn will host the organization's 'innovations' branch, and Vienna will host IRENA's office for liaison with the United Nations and other international energy organizations, the German Ministry of Environment announced.

According to the Household Income and Expenditure Survey that was conducted from April 1, 2007, to March 31, 2008, households of UAE citizens spend almost three times more than resident foreigners and individuals living in collective households. A collective household refers to dwellings with more than four occupants who have no blood relationship.

UAE citizen households consumed on average Dh305,500 worth of goods and services per year compared to an average of Dh106,400 spent by resident foreigner households and Dh47,500 by collective households.

The average annual per capita expenditure amounted to approximately Dh24,700, with UAE nationals spending Dh 29,900 per year, against Dh25,200 for non-nationals and Dh12,000 for members of collective households.

Dubai-listed Deyaar Development has scrapped its Enclave project in Dubai and put a deal in Saudi Arabia on hold, its CEO said in comments published on Wednesday, as the downturn in the Gulf real estate market sees further project cancellations.

"We had to cancel the Enclave. Although the project was good, it was launched at a very inopportune time,” Markus Giebel was quoted as saying by UAE daily Emirates Business.

“As a developer we had to be fair and so we returned 100 per cent of our investors' money. We will be happy to review the decision if the market comes back.”

"The expansion in the services sector, notably in the tourism industry, will slow down as the influx of tourists falls on the back of weaker private consumption growth," he said.

However, Dubai's growth is expected to remain strong from a global perspective

The determination of the Dubai authorities to use strong fiscal expansion in order to ensure that the economy bounces back, especially in the construction sector, will mean that the economy will maintain strong growth going forward.

The Abu Dhabi Authority of Culture and Heritage (ADACH) has announced new discoveries from the Neolithic Age and late-Islamic period at Al Shuwaib archaeological site in Abu Dhabi.

The discovery includes a pair of silver earrings, two bronze coins, a small ring, stone tools used as hammers, grain grinders and knife sharpeners, as well as pieces of stone stoves, pottery and fossils of ostrich.

Granite fragments were also found on the site. ADACH said this probably shows attempts to carve granite pieces during the Neolithic Age. The pottery is said to be dating back to the late-Islamic period and seemingly belongs to nomad tribes who roamed the region during winter.

Abu Dhabi's citizens played a vital role in reporting desert sites to ADACH and even handed over several ancient pieces.

ADACH recently carried out surveys and excavations in different parts of the captial.

Sales of luxury goods in Dubai have dropped about 45 percent since the global economic crisis prompted local shoppers to tighten their purse strings and tourists to rethink spending sprees, a top retailer said.

Speaking to the Reuters Global Luxury Summit in Dubai, Tony Jashanmal, a director of the 90-year old Jashanmal Group of Companies, said the worst of the first real downturn in the region's retail sector in about 17 years had passed.

But the repercussions would linger as retailers scramble to sell excess stock and shoppers from recession-hit countries like Russia, who tended to frequent Dubai malls, stay home as they seek ways to weather the crisis.

"The sales of everything dropped a little bit, but more drastic was in the luxury field," said Jashanmal on Monday.