Rising costs for Dubai company

Drake & Scull CEO Khaldoun Tabari Dubai - Agencies Dubai’s Drake and Scull International (DSI) said net income for the first quarter of 2011 declined to AED37.6m (US$10.2m) from AED45.9m a year earlier amid rising expenses. Revenue for the three months ending 31 March increased to AED777m from AED645m compared to the same period in 2011 while expenses rose to AED72m from AED62m, the firm said in a filing to the Dubai bourse. The firm, which has been rapidly expanding its operations outside of its home market of Dubai, won contracts valued at AED1.3bn in first quarter in the Middle East and North Africa region, it said in April. DSI expects its Qatari unit to “increasingly contribute to the growth of the company especially with the recent establishment of its rail and civil divisions which will complement its existing mechanical, electrical, plumbing and water power operations,” it said. The company sees “substantial pick up in the Qatari construction index in second quarter,” it added. Some of the other major deals DSI has won during the first quarter of 2012 include a US$38m contract to provide mechanical, electrical and plumbing works for the Rocco Forte Hotel in Jeddah and a US$230m unspecified contract in Algeria. The company has also sharpened its focus outside of MENA, in the same quarter winning a US$27m deal to provide an intake water system for a thermal power station in Orissa, India.