Crystal Lagoons, a leading international water innovation company, said Monday it has joined hands with Egyptian property developer Madaar to build two lagoons at its $400-million Azha resort in Ain Sokhna, Egypt. A high-end waterfront luxury residential development, Azha is being described as ‘the new capital of Egypt', on the increasingly popular western Red Sea coast. The 1.6 million-sq-m development will feature a five-star line-up of luxurious amenities including spacious village residences, hotels and serviced apartments, a golf course and clubhouse, shops, community centres, a beach club, sports facilities and parks which is expected to be fully operational by 2020. A key developer of the ‘world's top amenity' able to bring an idyllic beach lifestyle anywhere in the world, Crystal Lagoons said the crystal-clear lagoons, which will be the centre piece of the project, will provide ample space for a range of watersports including swimming, kayaking, paddle boarding and windsurfing. Combined, the crystal-clear lagoons, developed at very low construction and maintenance costs, will total over 16 hectares, spanning 6.4 hectares and 10.2 hectares with completion expected at the end of 2018, it stated. On the contract win, Carlos Salas, th regional director (Middle East) at Crystal Lagoons, said: "The announcement marks Crystal Lagoons' 11th project in Egypt, which is emerging as a key market for the world-leading leisure amenity." "We have witnessed incredible growth in Egypt in the last two years and the country is now our fifth largest market with several projects in the pipeline to increase our presence further. We are not only adding to the aesthetic appeal of a destination, but providing practical recreational and leisure facilities, such as paddle boarding, sailing and kayaking, at low construction and maintenance costs that adds real value to the resort," stated Salas. Gasser Bahgat, the chief executive of Madaar Developments, said: "We are thrilled to be working with Crystal Lagoons on our flagship project; Azha Ein Sokhna. In Azha, we aim to create an all year-round haven and a tropical sanctuary for our clients." "We will have a long-term co-operation between Madaar and Crystal lagoon in Egypt and internationally. Crystal Lagoons will be part of our vision in transforming Azha into an idyllic beach paradise. We are eager to see both company's visions come to life," he added. Crystal Lagoons is the only global company with the technological capability to make the development of giant controlled manmade bodies of water economically viable. The company holds two Guinness World Records for the world's largest lagoon, the first in San Alfonso del Mar, Chile and the second in Sharm El Sheik, Egypt, which is the current world record holder at 12.2 hectares, said Salas. The large crystalline lagoons use 30 times less water than a similar sized golf course and half of the water required to irrigate a park of equivalent size. Designed to be self-cleaning, the lagoons use up to 100 times less chemicals than traditional systems and only two percent of the energy required by conventional filtering technologies, making them incredibly sustainable, he stated. The company recently unveiled a new film-based evaporation technology, which lowers water-waste rates by up to 70 per cent. "We have developed our patented technology and a proven business model to add significant value to a development at a very low cost, and provide substantial ROI for the developer," revealed Salas. Crystal Lagoons said it has currently over 600 projects, in various stages of development and negotiation, in 60 countries worldwide. "Globally we are providing a viable, affordable long-term solution, despite climate and geographical challenges. The proposition is particularly apt considering we can use any kind of water including brackish from underground aquifers, eliminating the need to consume valuable fresh water resources, something particularly pertinent to our partners in the Middle East," he added. Source: TradeArabia
