Solidere

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Solidere’s master plan for Beirut Central District (zoom)

Solidere s.a.l. is a Lebanese joint-stock company in charge of planning and redeveloping Beirut’s Centre Ville (Beirut Central District) following the conclusion, in 1990, of the country’s devastating civil war. By agreement with the government, Solidere enjoys special powers of eminent domain as well as a limited regulatory authority codified in law, making the company a unique form of public-private partnership.

Solidere was founded on May 5, 1994 by then-Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, who had made a priority of promoting Lebanon’s reconstruction and return to normalcy. The name “Solidere” stands for Société libanaise pour le développement et la reconstruction de Beyrouth, French for “The Lebanese Company for the Development and Reconstruction of Beirut.”

Projects

Solidere is widely credited as the most important force behind Beirut’s reemergence, in recent years, as a bustling urban destination with a chance to earn back its ancient title of “Paris of the Middle East.” Besides directly engaging in development of infrastructure, new construction, rehabilitation of war-torn structures, and urban landscaping, Solidere has worked to attract global retailers such as Virgin Megastores to Beirut Central District. The company’s most significant single project to date has been The Souks, a 100,000 m² retail center that is scheduled to open by year 2008. Other ongoing developments include the Hadiqat As-Samah (Garden of Forgiveness), Platinum Tower and the Marina Towers luxury residential complex.

Financials

Solidere’s shares are listed on the Beirut and Kuwait Stock Exchange, and its Global Depository Receipts trade on the London, Frankfurt and Luxembourg Stock Exchanges. Its share price on the Beirut exchange has risen sharply in recent years, from about US$5 in early 2004 to a high of US$26 in February 2006. [1] In June 2006, Solidere approved a US$100M dividends payout to its shareholders.

Most of Solidere’s investors are European and North American investment firms or Arab investors from the Gulf. Rafik Hariri himself owned a majority stake in Solidere before his assassination in 2005, and the Hariri family continues to be a principal shareholder. [2].

External links

• http://www.solidere.com.lb/ – Solidere’s homepage
• http://www.beirutmartyrssquare.com/
• http://www.cggl.org/scripts/new.asp?id=540 – New York Times critic Nicolai Ouroussoff on Lebanese architect Bernard Khoury’s criticism of Solidere's “soulless” architectural aesthetic
• http://www.lebanon.com/construction/beirut/ – Information about the reconstruction of Beirut Central District

References

• Solidere shares cross $18 threshold - The Daily Star
• Solidere company profile from ameinfo.com