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This is no surprise. Failing a sales-target in real estate is obviously always a serious issue, but failing 3 consecutive, formal sales test would in any case mean The End.

Does this mean the prices will come down?

Blue City bonds going to junk would have been good news a few months ago when the other projects looked like they were selling and reselling like hot cakes. But now that the whole market has basically gone to sh!t, it's not much of a story. Emaar shares are now priced for less than a price of a shawerma. The Wave properties are not moving on the resale market. Sama Dubai has put Yiti on hold and canceling Shinas all together. And one year after registering the highest surplus ever, Oman's 2009 budget is going to have a deficit.

What a turn of events!

Ibrahim…please let this forum know…do you have any idea of what you are commenting on??? Because I seriously doubt it…

I have been reading other people comments on previous topics in connection to this project…It feels awkward to realize that there is an army of people out there craving to see it fail…some of the comments and the info provided in the various blogs have in many cases a basis of truth...surprisingly though, half the truth is what is always presented and in a manner which does not help the project at all…the scary part is that some of the info seem to come from

a) people who are close to the project (one way or another)
b) people who parrot information …

Case a: Apparently you don’t know any better and this is why you talk about subjects that you obviously do not know or can possibly understand…if you wish to say or comment on something with accountability, please go on record …if not then you are not commenting, you are gossiping – therefore, this is all you are…just a gossiper (hope u didn’t have to go to school to become that).

Case b: You remind me of everybody’s cousin…who knows somebody, who knows the uncle of the wife of the guy who is working close to the other guy who had once met the secretary of the lady who was once girlfriend of the guy who was friends with a classmate of the prime minister…hahahahaha

Please, spare yourself sometime and do this project and this country a favour…

It’s in everybody’s interests (well…almost everybody’s) for this project and for ALL projects in Oman to be hugely successful...

Now, lets all go back to work!!!!!!!

What this forum should know: Mr. Shareholder is a member of the Blue City executive team. So is Mr. Loki.
They apparently feel it is completely acceptable for them to not inform their buyers adequately, or even to mis-inform the public via false statements in the press, but can not accept that others try to find out what's really going on and inform the public via this forum.
As concluded previously by other authors: it's a scam.

Dear Oo, i responded to your pertinent comments in another forum. By using the name stakeholder I purposely do not hide as to where I stand – I shall iterate it here – I am a stakeholder…not a shareholder! I stand with all the people who wish this project to be a success – as any Omani or anybody else working in the wider spectrum of the real estate industry should be – This is where I STAND so you can read my comments accordingly…it is always your right not to like them…you say I am a Blue City exe, for what is worth this is not true, but I do not expect to convince you…at least I am clear as to where I stand…now, please tell the forum where YOU STAND so the reliability of your comments can also be construed accordingly…introduction is a fundamental basis for any dialogue or debate to take place

Dear Stakeholder, I can't see anything wrong with my earlier statement regarding Blue City and do not understand how you can feel so upset about it.

Dear Boxter, re-sales prices will obviously come down. Most buyers want to dump their property as soon as possible, thus cutting their losses. Prices for new properties put on the market by Blue City (if any) will also be significantly lower than originally aimed for. It will be hard, if not impossible, to find any buyers in both cases.

Stakeholder's response is rubbish. As a Omani, I agree with others, speak up and tell the truth to all concerned. What about the court case with Bahrain guys, no update right? What about new sales launch, no update right? 3rd failed sales test, what next, no update right? How long do you guys intend to fool public at large? Is anybody from the Blue City Project taking ownership and explaining as to whats happening? Initially the new CEO was giving interviews all over the place? Okay, stakeholder, clarify the situation please...

Dear Ahmed, Well said. All we have ever heard from BC Co., is waffle, waffle, waffle. It does the reputation of Oman no good. As otherwise, the self evident facts speak very clearly for themselves. Maybe Stakeholder truly believes that denial is a river in far off Egypt. Its remarkable how far this lot (BC) will go to to make everyone somehow feel guilty. Maybe they should look to the Wave as to how such matters should be handled, as they (BC) clearly seem very, very naive.. yet also seem to have a desperate need to tell everyone else that it is they who are so afflicted - and that can only offer more evidence of a blind-sighted follower of the BC gravy train throwing around someones elses money.

Willie Dryer

thank you Ahmed for the opportunity and I hope that you will not find the below as rubbish - I will start clarifying (to the best of my ability) by asking questions which we will all need to answer (on sales tests, on bonds and anything else you want) – nonetheless, a reminder that you also need to identify where you stand – do you wish this project to be successful or not? This is a simple question that every critic avoids to answer.

Many people have talked and talked and talked and talked about the failure of “sales tests”. Does anybody really know what these tests are, what do they mean, how they have been set in the first place as targets and what, if any, failure of a “sales test” means in practical terms for the project?? Any sophisticated investor ought to follow this logic and not absorb information spread by people who parrot HALF the truth – this is where the opportunity is; discerning between reality and rumours.

Moreover, is it that the Blue City is not selling or is it that the Blue City is not selling as fast as it should be per what is envisaged by the loan which has been given to the project? Any sophisticated investor would see these as two totally different cases! Is it that there product is bad/not appealing? My personal opinion is that all existing buyers have bought an excellent product, in a great country and at superbly cheap prices! – only speculative investors who do not have the muscle to hold on to a property for a while should be concerned – but this is the risk of being speculative -the resell market is currently going bad globally – not a fundamental problem with the actual product of Blue City…

Dear Ibrahim, nothing personal – the reason you thought I was upset is because you were the first one to comment one topic about the downgrading of certain bonds by saying the abstract “this is no surprise” and “sales tests”, "the End". I guess you understand the practical importance of what, if any, this downgrade of a bond means when the entire world is preparing bail out packages for institutions, nations and entire industries(?) I guess you also know the terms of the specific bonds, how these have been structured and how were they rated in the first place(?)I guess that you also know whether or the extent to which sales affect the repayment of this particular set of bonds or whether there are reserves, credit guarantees in place for the benefit of the bondholders? If so, please enlighten us. If not, please ask and find out before commenting again on an issue that you do not fully understand.

Look forward to talking to you all again

- A person who wants this to be a success

Stakeholder, thank you. All of us in Oman want this project to become successful, we are just worried about that the formula for success has become so illusive. My cousin claims he has confirmed a villa for himself at Sawadi a.k.a. blue city. I truly hope, my cousin will eventually live there at Sawadi.

But, let me reproduce Samir Pandiri of Bank of Newyork Mellon's write up for more clairy. Incidentally, Samir was one of the guys who actually knows what is talking. This report is public domain. Following is his summary:

The Bank of New York Mellon was selected by Blue City Investments 1 Limited to provide multiple corporate trust services, including acting as trustee, registrar, agent, cash manager, account bank, look back calculation agent, and Irish paying agent.

In this rapidly evolving market, trustees are often selected by borrowers and arrangers to administer and support both conventional financing and emerging debt structures in a variety of new ways. This is leading to increased trustee responsibilities, making the trustee a key partner in the overall plan and central to the success of the project.

The Blue City project required a hybrid approach, with structured finance, credit enhancement, real estate financing, and project finance rolled up into one seamless package. The ownership structure, securitisation, and international cash flows also make this project different. For example, the notes are protected by reserve accounts backing payment of principal and interest on certain series, a credit insurance policy backing payment of principal on certain series, real estate collateral, cash flows resulting from sale of the residential properties, and operating cash flows from the nonresidential assets once operational.

The successful sale of residential properties will ultimately determine whether the project can move forward. The trustee, is charged with making that determination on the part of the investors by applying a capital expenditures test and a residential sales test.

To repeat his words: THE SUCCESSFUL SALE OF RESIDENTIAL PROPERTIES WILL ULTIMATELY DETERMINE WHETHER THE PROJECT CAN MOVE FORWARD..

By the way, you have not answered any of other questions in my note. If you are self-proclaimed spokesperson of Blue City, please answer them for the sake of national interest.

- Yes, I am also a person who wants this project to be a success

Here is the link:

http://www.bankofny.com/CpT...

Thank you Ahmed - we have contact – you sound a person who is interested in truth

Ahmed - I am not a self proclaimed spokesperson for Blue City and, certainly not, I am not in a position to address matters of national interest…I am a simple stakeholder – wanting this to be a success - just like you – it is always healthy to have a different voice on the table – maybe you will not consider mine as a wise voice, but at least now we have a dialogue and not the monologues of critics

Your cousin made an excellent choice and I am sure that he and his family will enjoy it for years – it is my personal opinion that everybody who can invest with the ability to hold on it for a while will seize great benefits – and because of all the general circumstances this is a great time for anyone to get his hands on undervalued assets globally – btw, I am sure that your cousin will only be required to make subsequent payments as and only when construction progresses…what are you worried about him then, in case the villa is not completed? I wouldn’t be…i presume that it would make sense to any developer to focus on delivering his revenue generating elements...if the villa is sold why would the developer not build it and spend their money to built something which they have not sold...From an investor’s point of view I would be more concerned if financing was secured through completion, thus I would eventually be bound to pay 100% for a property no matter what the market conditions were – imagine if you did the mistake to buy at some point a property which through construction or after construction could not be sold due to lack of market interest (or if you wanted to live there your neighbouring properties remained empty…) - at least in this case, if you are not delivered what is promised, you do have an exit option and cut any losses…right?

Ahmed – with your help also this is going to be a huge success. Look forward to talking to you again

ps: I have given you indications to answer some of your previous questions, for others I do not know or I cannot answer as they were rhetorical.

Great. I presume it is indeed a good decision then from my cousin; having said that, its sad and very very unprofessional on the part of the blue city management for not giving clear way-forward plans (either completion or exit options) to the buyers. It takes somebody who like you, a stakeholder to champion their cause, albeit on a non-obligatory basis. I truly look forward to somebody who would call themselves (officially ofcourse) as spokesperson of bluecity and make a public announcement clarifying all these issues. Rumors will continue to float if the management does not muster courage to address this vital issue. There should be somebody looking after marketing and PR within the ranks. Dear stakeholder, thank you, but if you indeed know more than all of us, please do let the management know that people would appreicate the truth, even if its bitter. Lets put a stop to speculations and rumors. Good luck and wishing the project all success.

Ahmed - fair comments - in general, i guess this is what exacerbates any problem or any crisis - people do not sit down to talk, identify the problems and put them into their real perspective -
my best wishes to you for anything you do - I am sure there are a lot of people like you out there who are thinkers and look into smth a bit more
Look forward to talking to you again

Well well, Blue City joining the Oman blog-community for promotion of their scam. Very interesting indeed.
Just to be clear: I seem to fit in Mr. Stakeholder's category 1, meaning that I'm indeed close enough to the project to know what is going on. I personally have nothing to gain or to lose by the success of Blue City, so I consider myself in that sense objective. I want Oman, as country and as people, to be a success, but I do not believe in Blue City in it's current set-up as it can only fail. And yes, this would unfortunately harm the reputation of Oman. And no, this can obviously not be contributed to the blogs!

stakeholder...you keep on about "where you stand" how about standing with the truth. No one wants to see projects in Oman fail...yet Blue City seems to be going down the path of failure....its a fact, no matter how much you want to argue and use big words...it is what it is...simple.

Dear Stakeholder, your knowledge of Blue City bonds is obviously far more advanced than mine, so why don’t you explain it all to us silly bloggers/public? Could you also explain how repeatedly not achieving sales targets by such huge numbers will not afflict the shareholders and have serious ramifications for such a significant real estate development? And while you’re at it, could you also please, on behalf of the Blue City management, respond to following simple questions:
- Why are the new sales launches delayed for such a long time?
- What are the new ‘revised’ sales targets and dates? How are these, given the current circumstances at Blue City, intended to be met?
- Why have construction works still not started? When will the apparent ‘start-up’ problems all be resolved? When will construction works for the first buildings really start? Mr. Russell said this year…right?
- What about the start- and completion dates for the first apartment blocks for which deposits have been received?
- Which part (or percentage) of Phase 1 do you believe will actually be completed by 2012? Mr. Russell said that all of Phase 1 would be completed…right?
- When will the works related to road-, power-, water-, cooling-, telecoms-infrastructure start? Will this be completed when/if the first buildings are ready for occupation?
- What is the actual status of the design for the first buildings to be constructed?
- Why did the recently appointed sales & marketing executive leave shortly after his announced appointment? Why did the appointed project management company choose to pull out of the project? Why is the real estate sales agent pulling out? Why has the contractor prepared a detailed exit-plan?
- How much of the original loan/funds is still left today for actual construction works? When will these funds be depleted if/when sales do not pick up?
- When is the outcome of the court case with the shareholders from Bahrain expected? What is the currently expected and likely outcome? If these guys need to be ‘compensated’, where will this money come from?
- Based on the current delays and problems facing the project, will existing buyers be offered an ‘exit-option’?

I could of course attempt to answer these very basic questions myself based on the information available to me, but I assume you would prefer to do this for me and ensure the public receives accurate and reliable information?

Dear Oo, Nawaf, Willie, Ibrahim. In the such a small forum discusssion, all of us tend to believe this project is heading towards failure, unfortunately though. With an exception Stakeholder, all of us are clear and simple. When I read comments from Stakeholder, I was little satisfied, but when I talk about the project with common man and not-so-common men, almost 99% of the people are negative about bluecity and its phase one completion; most of them say that there is no start yet, forget the completion...trust me none of us gain if the project is a failure, but somehow the management of bluecity is very very silent, they are not talking at all. Even the media is not reporting anything substantial, only advertisements of almadina al zrqa for money, nothing clear however. Can SOMEBODY say in simple words whats happening with this project, SOMEBODY from the project company...we also now hear that contractor (turkish and greek consoritum - AECO) are pulling out of the project...is it true? project management company (BLL - Bovis Lend Lease) are already out...no news is not always good news; even it is bad news, announce it; announce it soon.

My fellow stakeholders, isn’t it so much more intriguing to exchange views and have a dialogue? Apologize in advance for the long note. I will try to respond to each one of you. I need to break my response into more than one notes (due to word limit) – so please read through and below…

Dear Nawaf –> I always stand for the truth. This is why I am writing such long notes.To say the truth.. I SHALL NEVER LIE to you or anybody in this forum.
If I do not know about a subject I will admit it and I will not comment without having investigated. I am just trying to think and seek further to the “headlines”. Everything that I wrote above is either publicly available information or common logic used in an attempt to think a little bit forward. I have never written that the Blue City project does not face huge challenges. IT DOES. If it did not, it would not be a grand project.
Apparently, one of the many issues that their management should address is the bad word and rumors around on their project…I agree with all of you on this! Based on my knowledge, the project does not deserve this and in many cases there are some very simple answers to be provided which can settle these issues once and for all (e.g. as per my previous conv with Ahmed).

Dear Oo -> thank you for responding
You, just like me, are another stakeholder. As I have written to you previously I am not BCC1’s management nor authorized in any possible way to speak on behalf of them. I do not of course expect to convince you on that, but if you are close on the project and know what’s going on as you say you would also know that this is not their action (or style)…The most I can say to you in this respect is that you have my word that I am participating on my own initiative…why? because I am another stakeholder - just like you.
Nonetheless, I am confident that there is only benefit for all in engaging in a more constructive dialogue rather than blindly criticizing everything and everybody with insufficient information– I will agree with all of you though that if Blue City does not do anything to stop untruthful rumors going around is a matter that we all shall criticize….- btw, I am not, of course, the fountain of knowledge on the project– I am also seeking for answers by investigating matters - your comments may also help me in learning smth that I do not know..

[…continued..]

[…continued..]

Dear Ibrahim –> I never said or implied that you are silly
I am sure you are a person who is inquisitive and this is why I just reminded you to investigate before you comment – the information with regard to the bonds is smth that I know as it is publicly available information…Ahmed found references to reserves, credit guarantees, etc available on the internet, right?this is what you could have also done.
With regard to your questions: I reiterate that I do not speak on behalf of Blue City management. All of your questions are fare and show depth of knowledge..
I know that there are some very simple and convincing answers to ALL your questions - if you are a prospective buyer/investor I fail to see why somebody from Blue City does not answer these to you. Have you asked them?

Some answers - as it is a question of some of you this should be clarified once and for all…the “appointed project management company” that you say (Bovis) was NOT and has never been the project manager of the project. Bovis role was limited to this date to providing a team of people to support the Blue City company in their overall project management operations (i.e. a team within Blue City team). This should be made clear. Bovis were never managing the project. Management of the project was and is with Blue City. Blue City has a design and build contract with the joint venture (AECO). The representative/agent of Blue City under the design and build contract, i.e. the company reviewing designs, monitoring execution of the works etc is (and has always been) another company (not Bovis).
Whilst Bovis is a great company and has very qualified people in their ranks …the information I get is that their decision to leave the project was simply a decision made at the company’s level in view also of the fact that they didn’t have the project manager’s role on the project. For all I know Bovis may have thought that they could use their qualified staff in a better/more lucrative way on other projects that they are involved…who knows..? You should note that Bovis is a large and recognized company and might have not wanted to stay aboard on this limited role. Personally, I think that they may have second thoughts in a few months given the credit crunch and the fact that there will be fewer projects out there…

With regard to the contractor I honestly do not know whether what you say is true or the extent it is true and why, if true, they would be making such plans. I say that the contractor comprises a joint venture of two very serious and respectable companies – as any businessmen would do, they may prepare for whatever scenario, irrespective of whether the relevant scenario might be extremely unlikely to occur…it is a universal principle that contractors try to prepare for whatever scenario, even in the outset of the project…proof of that is that construction contracts provide for whatever scenario u might think of !!

Btw, note to all that the contractor is also a stakeholder on the project…a HUGE one actually…this project is very important to them, if not their flagship project… 2Billion my friends …please go in their shoes and think… would u ever not want this project/contract to continue to completion and be a great success?? Even if times were ever bad and the project faced challenges wouldn’t you do the most you could do to help it to go forward, get completed and become a success…they have 2 billion waiting for them and far more than 2 billion at stake..( future phases or other projects…and and and – I could go on) I bet that they consider this country as a place that they would like to work for years to come…Do u blame them? I don’t, it’s a great country!

Ibrahim, I know that I have not answered all your questions – as I wrote to you above, If you are a prospective investor I am sure that Blue City can and should provide you with some very true and convincing answers…I suggest that you go ahead and ask them!

Ahmed –> hello my friend

Some of your questions I covered in my response to Ibrahim. If, as u say, 99% of the people have a negative perception of the project then this should be ISSUE number 1 for Blue City to address! ASAP! The public is not silly nor naïve – the opposite -they have a great acumen – when they feel you are bullsh..them they will know it! Simple answers, true answers and problems solved!

Dear Stakeholder, It just used to be waffle, waffle, waffle, but now all we are hearing (from you) is waffle, garbage, waffle, garbage, waffle, garbage.

Thank you Willie Dryer for your constructive comment and congratulations for your contribution to a the discussion...

Stakeholder said he would never lie on this forum. But he didn't say he was going to speak the (full) truth either. Stakeholder knows very well (as do all other parties involved in the project) that Bovis terminated their contract because Blue City did not pay the bills. And as far as I'm aware, Bovis is still waiting for their money, which is apparently a huge sum which would be well worth another court case against Blue City.

Dear Stakeholder, My pleasure.

Dear the Greek –>welcome to our discussion
I have read comments that you have provided in another blog. You certainly fall under my category (a) above, i.e. people close to the project who put a bad word out on the basis of insufficient/half information. Should this is the way that you interpreted my statement that I shall never lie, let me just say that I consider that saying half the truth is actually lying…this is what I have not done but this is what you do.

I have researched this. What you say has a basis of truth but it is not the truth. Although I fail to see why the public would want to know the exact details of claims outstanding between two parties that have stopped their contractual relationship (this is a common situation in any project and this is why people have contracts), please go and check your facts with this. Is it that Blue City stopped paying Bovis just because one fine day Blue City decided to do so (of course not) or because they did not have money (of course not) or was it that they stopped paying CERTAIN bills as, in light of a potential termination by Bovis, there would be a substantial amount of money owed to Blue City BY Bovis…? Check your facts. Just to clarify, nothing I said here is with the objective of blaming Bovis in any way…On the contrary, they are a grand company, with great people, but…this was their decision and they had their reasons, life goes on, the project goes on, hope everybody is successful.
In any case, I say that this level of detail is IRRELEVANT and I apologize to all for having to answer something which adds on to the discussion more as gossip…

ps: Btw, my dear “The Greek”, I am bewildered as to why you never felt compelled to write here to correct people’s impression, i.e.that Bovis were managing the project or other fallacious info appearing about the project…mmmmmmm, makes one wonder of your motives

Dear Willie-> congrats again.The pleasure is all yours.

Dear Stakeholder, its indeed interesting discussion on the bluecity subject. Can we please make this debate more simple... (1) what is the current status of the project (2) when will the construction of villas start and when will it be completed with necessary basic infrastructure in place, (3) will the result of court case make any difference to my cousin, buyer and a common man?

Honestly, most of us who are following this exciting project are actually interested in this very very basic truth. Can somebody keep it simple and just answer them.

It really doesn't matter to us if BLL going to file a case against bluecity1, neither AECO walking out, nor hamptons stopping their sales, key staff turn-over, failed sales tests, negative fund positons...no these does not interest common people, not really. this is the 27th comment already on this forum, and it beats me that blue city management is still fast asleep without issuing a meaningful statement. i am told that the chairman is the editor or something like that of the newspaper, perhaps he could issue a free press notification, but wait...IT SHOULD CONTAIN FACTS...Insha Allah everything will be okay with project if the owners are serious and are concerned with the country's image, but let me be repetitive, speak the truth...

Be careful Mr. Greek, you are dealing with the allies here: US and UK. And as usual, the US is always right, always fair, always honest, never tortures, never cheats, never lies, always the good guy. You, therefore, are the bad guy!

i Ahmed -> glad u're bringing this down to what it really matters and not the gossip

As i know u are concerned about your cousin a lot...as a buyer i guess he could ask Blue City directly..To the best of MY knowledge:
1)If you mean the construction of the project, construction as in actual “buildings construction” (cause construction on site has already commenced) this is imminently to commence with the beachfront properties (which are the first to have been sold and, as such, to be delivered). Villa constructions will follow accordingly for properties to be completed by the time that will be provided in the purchase agreements, which I guess your cousin has also entered into. As previously discussed with you, my understanding is that your cousin will only be required to make payments only as and when construction progresses...
2) I know that Blue City will be focused to deliver the properties ready for hand over (i.e.construction with appropriate infrastructure in place) including the villas that you are concerned about by the times specified in the agreements that people will enter into. No developer is stupid enough not to want to built what has been sold and deliver to their customers what has been promised, thus reaching the relevant construction milestones and triggering the payments that they are to receive from buyers…right? You should note that timely provision of infrastructure is not only a matter of Blue City's responsibility…To a large extent it is affected by relevant progress made by public authorities in this respect...i hear that substantial progress has been made in this respect by all (Blue City and public authorities)
3) It should not really at all…To give you an example…The accounts that your cousin will deposit his money will find their way to accounts controlled by the funders of the project and not the by any of the parties to the dispute . This does not change even if the court awards its decision in the favour of even...you and I!
(but this would mean that we would not just be stakeholders, but shareholders...!).
anyway
hope this helps

Dear Oo -> the only allies in this should be all of us, the stakeholders…You, as you have said, are one of us. I guess you are now buffed to realize that blind criticism has come to an end and any obsessed critics better be relied on facts and not smth they heard over dinner or drinks by another "connoisseur"…spare me the “I have nothing to gain or lose”, if you did not you would not participate and appear show biased…you can join “the Greek” and anybody else in spreading rumours …I don’t know of your motives and I am not concerned…but the public has judgement…if they read the above they will discern who is providing facts and undisputed truths and who is just commenting abstract such as “waffle, garbage” and “US allies, the US don’t torture”…etc congratulations to you too, very pertinent comments! for all I know u even started warning people that I am Blue City exe…now you warn them that I am US/UK allies…excuse me in advance for this, but, I cant help it...ahhahahahaahaahahhaah …you are just about to lose your credibility (if not already) and you wish to warn people as well…please please please...i suggest you get another name to use in "contributing" to this forum cause you have managed to burn this one already...

Thank you for the input Dear Stakeholder, I will explain this bit to my cousin. Let me be honest, he hasn't succeeded in getting proper information that he could understand (not even what you have kindly explained here) from the bluecity people. perhaps I could now give him the printouts of your response and may be he will be lucky this time around to receive more clear information from the people at the bluecity office. I am told they just keep promising new updates and nothing comes up. For reasons obvious, i dont want to take names of the people whom he has met both in ruwi and aziaba offices.

Everybody is entitled for their opinion and may be I don't see anything personal about the comments of Ibrahim, Oo and other's comments. I feel as a project, bluecity and people supporting the project should be kind towards others; the truth is, there has been an inordinate delay in this project already and some pepole are obviously upset. The global meltdown etc is the recent situation, this project was launched with a huge fanfare (i think early 2005).

Thank you...

Mr. Stakeholder, who is it you are trying to convince? Who's (lack of) credibility is at stake? You're so full of yourself, it's simply pathetic. Must be the Yankee-factor...
Shall we indeed please let the readers/public determine who and what they believe? Guess the sales figures you will soon openly and truthfully (meaning: the full truth, no lies) share with the public will speak for themselves...
And please, Mr. Stakeholder, don't consider me to be one of you. It was you, not me, who said I'm one of you. I certainly don't wish to be associated with the sorry bunch of crooks and liars in charge of Blue City!

I'm amazed to see the volume of comment, but disappointed that much of the commentary has degenerated into innuendo and accusation. I do tend to sympathise with those who commented who asked for the facts to be made public. Suppose that triggered additional flights of finance?

From an outside point of view, I think the following points could be made.

The Blue City scheme was launched by a non-Omani company which had dodgy financial connections. (Anybody been following that one? It's been interesting).

Blue City's bond was raised through Bear Stearns, the first investment bank to go under in the credit crisis.

The Omani partners, for whatever reason, although financial irregularities MIGHT be a motive, chose to distance itself from the Bahraini partner. For a scheme on this scale, I would have thought that the Omani partners would have thought that the prestige should belong to Oman.

The parting of the ways has not, as I understand, yet been substantiated. I was also told, although I have not personally read, of a campaign in Bahrain within the last two years, to denigrate members of the Omani management.

The mere fact that the Omani partners lost their court case earlier in the year suggests poor management. They should never have gone into court if there was a more than evens chance that they would lose. There's more than one way to sort out financial disputes.

As we all know only too well, the global economic situation is one of recession. The Gulf countries are not immune. Across the border in UAE, two large mortgage companies have been put effectively into government ownership. Nakheel, the Dubai real-estate developer, is putting several of its projects on hold, including the Trump Tower, the Frond N villas, and the Gateway Towers.

It's now impossible to say whether Blue City could or would have gone ahead had there not been a reversal of economic fortunes. Along with many other property developments worldwide, it's fallen victim to financial pressures.

You could make the point that there wasn't adequate marketing and that maybe that was because objectives weren't defined. If you're selling housing at upmarket prices, you have to aim at upmarket incomes. Did the developers truly welcome expatriate residents, for example? Originally, the concept was one of a new city, was it not? Which presupposes a whole raft of infrastructural requirements additional to building accommodation rather than a purely tourist development. Latterly, the orientation seems to have been more to having a 'desres' by the sea.

At any rate, I have no further facts that I can add at this stage, and I would ask that those who choose to comment bring facts to bear on the case rather than exchange accusations.

Thank you.

Ahmed-> I am glad that these were of help. Best to you and your cousin.
You are right that everybody is entitled to their opinion. This is why I took the time to address as many issues as I could as these were raised by the various members. However, I shall add that everybody is entitled to their opinion, but no one is entitled to (untruthfully) criticizing to the point of being a fanatic, when they actually don’t know what they are talking about. The fist time you read my comments you said “rubbish”. Fair enough, but then we engaged in a dialogue, some answers were provided, some you take them on board, some not, this my friend is dialogue..

Newbriefs -> Facts have been given, accusations will apparently continue because some people cannot stand that they will have somebody who is going to trash all their gossip campaign by providing simple answers when what they say is not true.

Oo -> i feel rather satisfied that anyone who reads through will easily distinguish who has actually provided facts and has addressed issues brought forward by others. At the time that I was providing answers, you continued “contributing” nothing other than talking about US/UK allies, tortures… air mambo jumbo…
You say that you are objective…The fact that you are obviously SOoooo biased does not make me wonder anymore of your motives. I just don’t care about it. Big development projects have always their blind critics… what drives most of them??? Jealousy…(combined with their own individually incompetence).

Waffle, garbage, waffle, garbage, waffle, garbage ZZZZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzz............

I was just two days out of the country and see what happened. Very interesting!
Seems most of the questions raised previously remain unanswered. Ironically Stakeholder has chosen to only answer the one or two questions he regards as 'irrelevant'. So what about the relevant ones? Seems Blue City is simply not prepared to tell the truth. Wonder why....

Interesting debate indeed, but somehow we are not getting answers in simple format. I am aware that there are no correct answers for all the questions, but as the proverbial saying goes, small lies leads to big lies. The best part of speaking the truth is that one has to remember nothing ((my mother taught me this 50 years ago); only when you lie, you have to remember what you said before and you have to become cautious.

Congratulations to Bluecity for signing the MOU with a SPA hotel from Bangkok; nice pictures of signing ceremony in the newspaper, but where are the details, when will it become public domain e.g. How many room keys, etc., this is small example of how bluecity is missing the point in their PR exercise. It is a mega project, agreed, so why cant you guys have some transparency in your public dealings, how much longer will it take for you to realize that you are continuing to damage your already damaged reputation. The biggest and most successful form of advertising in Gulf is word-of-mouth and we all know that; we all also know that word-of-mouth rumors have so far destroyed a fantastic vision of making a new city. Wake up guys at the bluecity, its difficult economic times and not an ideal time to be complacent and take people for granted. I appreciate stakeholder’s enthusiasm and hopefully the truth will start getting communicated soon, perhaps through this forum.

God bless.

Let me get this straight. Shareholder says he stands for the truth and will not lie on this forum, he subsequently lies regarding Bovis' motivations, I correct him by providing a truthful answer, and I’m subsequently accused by Shareholder of lying. Isn’t that something…!
I do think it would indeed be best to let the public decide what they believe. As Mr. Ahmed pointed out: …THE SUCCESSFUL SALE OF RESIDENTIAL PROPERTIES WILL ULTIMATELY DETERMINE WHETHER THE PROJECT CAN MOVE FORWARD... As Oo said, let’s indeed wait for the real sales figures, they will speak for themselves.

I'm closing comments on this because I don't think the discussion is revealing any new information.