Maldives Fund Management Corporation (MFMC) officially signed an agreement with Atoll Works Private Limited today. The agreement contracts the company for dredging, reclamation, and shore protection of 16 islands within the K. Gaafaru lagoon under the Gaafaru Integrated Tourism Development Project.
As outlined by MFMC, 14 of the designated islands are slated for individual private island development aimed at real estate ventures, whilst the remaining two have been allocated to establish luxury tourist resorts.
Today, MFMC has officially signed with Atoll Works Private Limited, embarking on the first steps to initiate Gaafaru Integrated Tourism Development Project. pic.twitter.com/ZSbQlLslwc
— Maldives Fund Management Corporation (@mfmc_mv) May 8, 2024
The ambitious project entails the reclamation of an additional 40 hectares of land on Gaafaru island, bringing the total reclamation area to 106.91 hectares.
This initiative marks the first simultaneous reclamation of multiple islands within the same lagoon in Kaafu Atoll.
Valued at USD 36.5 million, the project encompasses dredging, reclamation, and shore protection. USD 29.2 million was allocated specifically for the dredging of 3,747,792 cubic meters of sand at a competitive rate of USD 7.80 per cubic meter. In recent years, this rate has been one of the most competitive observed for a reclamation project in the Maldives.
The project will proceed under a contractor financing model, facilitating swift resource mobilization and initiation of the reclamation works. Since MFMC is not required to make any upfront payment to the contractor, physical work is anticipated to commence soon.
Repayment of the contracted amount will commence upon the completion of island reclamation and the subsequent revenue generation through the sale of these islands on a long-term lease basis to private buyers.
Through a presidential decree, the Maldives government entrusted K. Gaafaru Lagoon to MFMC to implement an integrated tourism development initiative. The corporation has also finalized a conceptual masterplan for the lagoon, with the reclamation works as the initial phase per the outlined plan.
