Dubai to build eco-friendly flower city

Dubai Municipality has been given the go-ahead to build an eco-friendly city in the shape of a flower in the middle of the desert.

The Dhs 30 billion-Desert Rose City will cover an area of 14,000 hectares on Dubai-Al Ain Road, accommodating up 160,000 people.

Among the planned plots, 20,000 will be allocated as luxury homes for Emiratis and 10,000 will be affordable housing units for expatriates, while the buildings will be powered by solar panels.

Dubai Municipality said the city would rely on its own resources for transport, communications, energy and recycled water, providing more than 40,000 cubic meters of potable water.

Artistic impressions of the planned development were unveiled by the municipality today, though no details of its exact location and opening date were revealed.

Plans for the smart satellite city project were originally announced in 2014, but further details have not emerged since then.

Dawood Al Hajiri, executive director of the municipality’s planning department, told The National that the smart city would be completely sustainable and provide about 200 megawatts of electricity using photovoltaic roofs on homes and other premises.

He said that 75 per cent of the city would be dedicated to housing.