Contract involves construction of 30 properties including five-star hotels, office buildings and high-end apartments

China State Construction Engineering Corp said on Wednesday it had signed an agreement with Abu Dhabi sovereign fund Aabar. Under the agreement the construction company will develop real estate projects in Abu Dhabi for a total investment of $2 billion.

In 2010, Aabar Investments PJSC launched “Aabar Properties”, which is the real estate arm of the sovereign fund. During Cityscape Abu Dhabi 2010, the company revealed detailed plans in regards to its projects, investments and vision. The company stated at the time that it has under the development projects with value of US $5 billion in top locations in Abu Dhabi, such as: Al-Raha Beach, Tomouh, Abu Dhabi Star at Al-Reem Island. At the time, “Aabar Properties” was reportedly seeking to develop systems and policies that would not only offer and sell real estate units, but would also provide financing facilities.

“Aabar Properties” goal is to become the sole developer which shall develop, sell, manage and own real properties all over the Emirate’s areas; a quality no other major developer enjoys.

Industrial and Commercial Bank of China Ltd will provide Aabar with funding, while China State Construction will be the contractor for the projects, China State Construction said in a statement to the Shanghai stock exchange. According to the contract, the project involves building 30 properties including five-star hotels, office buildings and high-end apartments.

Chinese project contractors have been expanding their overseas’ profile in recent years. According to the annual report on foreign project contracting released by China International Contractors Association, the conutry’s offshore contracting industry will expand 5 to 10 percent in 2012.