International Trade Secretary, Dr Liam Fox has today, Thursday February 9 2017, announced that UKEF will support a Carillion contract worth tens of millions of pounds to build a revolutionary environmental building in the UAE.

In a significant collaboration between UK firms Carillion and Zaha Hadid Architects, and leading UAE-based environmental management company Bee’ah, support from UK Export Finance (UKEF) has helped secure a contract to build Bee’ah’s new headquarters in Sharjah, UAE, worth tens of millions of pounds.

Bee’ah’s headquarters was designed by the late Dame Zaha Hadid, the world-renowned British architect. It will be built by Carillion and will be the first building of its kind in the city of Sharjah to be powered entirely by renewable and recoverable energy sources, whilst utilising recycled materials in its construction.

The headquarters is expected to be operational by the end of 2018, moving towards the major milestone of being powered by 100% renewable energy by 2021.

The financing deal provides for both the construction and design of Bee’ah’s new headquarters; UKEF will support the Carillion and Zaha Hadid contracts under its Direct Lending Facility. HSBC Bank Middle East Ltd has acted as arranger on the transaction, and HSBC Bank Plc is the agent.

International Trade Secretary Dr Liam Fox said:

“Our support to help Carillion secure this contract shows the UK’s global leadership in sustainable engineering, and our pioneering expertise in developing smart cities and green buildings for the future. The UAE is a key partner in the region and 5,000 UK companies work in there. Through UKEF, the government is ensuring that British firms can be the first choice to support the country’s ambitions.@

The headquarters will be powered by low- and zero-carbon sources, including solar power and waste-to-energy and will be one of the most advanced buildings in the region. Using British architectural and construction expertise, the design has been developed to use natural light and temperature management systems where possible.”