The Dubai developer Nakheel says it plans to award construction contracts worth AED 10 billion ($2.72 billion) this year, more than three times the value it signed in 2016.

Nakheel Chairman Ali Rashid Lootah said that the company plans to make the awards amid a “promising” outlook for the future, after the company reported record annual profits for 2016.

“Under our ongoing commitment to maintaining the momentum in the local economy, Nakheel awarded construction contracts worth around AED3 billion in 2016, and is set to award AED10 billion worth this year,” Lootah said in an emailed statement.

“The future is promising and we are confident that our strategy of having a diversified business will significantly benefit Nakheel and reinforce its position as one of the world’s leading real estate developers.

“We are currently working towards completing our healthy pipeline of projects and making them operational in the next few years, starting with The Pointe at Palm Jumeirah, one of our key hospitality and retail destinations, which is due to open this year.”

Nakheel on Wednesday announced record annual net profits, reporting that it made AED4.96 billion ($1.35bn) in 2016, a 13% increase on the the previous year.

Nakheel reported a net profit of AED955 million for the last quarter of 2016 – up 22% on the AED781 million posted for the same period in 2015.

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