Engineering firm Dar al Handasah (Shair & Partners) – or DAR, purchased a 6,500 square meter land plot to build its headquarters. The plot is near the Concorde complex on the Rachid Karamé Street in the Verdun district. It is one of the few remaining clear parcels in this prime area.

The land was sold by Chafiq Hariri, Chairman of the Geneco contracting company, and brother of Member of Parliament and former minister Bahia Hariri. The value of the deal was not disclosed. “Press estimates of $100 million are exaggerated,” said a source close to the deal.

The land was used as a parking lot for the nearby Grand Cinemas complex and supermarket chain TSC.

“The firm initiated an internal competition for its staff to design the new structure but nothing is yet final,” said Riad Mneimneh, Director of Operations of DAR in Lebanon. The firm has not chosen a contractor as it has just concluded the purchase.

For over 50 years, DAR has been working on projects for public and private sector clients regionally and internationally. The company employs 7,600 people operating across 45 offices in the Middle East, Africa, Asia, and Europe, of which five principal design centers in Beirut, Cairo, London, Pune (India), and Amman. It also owns several companies, including in the United States.