UAE master developer Arada has expanded Australian tier-one contractor Roberts Co into the region, integrating the firm into its specialised Arada Industries division.

The strategic move establishes a permanent UAE presence for the Australian builder, which has already deployed a central head office team in the country. By bringing Roberts Co in-house, Arada aims to involve construction specialists directly during early design and planning phases, optimising project timelines, lowering total expenditure and enhancing overall delivery quality across its portfolio.

Arada acquired Roberts Co in 2025 following its initial expansion into the Australian property market. The tier-one firm brings technical delivery experience across multiple sectors, including commercial, healthcare, residential, education, hospitality, industrial, life sciences and defence.

The contractor’s primary assignment in the UAE will be Phase 2 of the Arada Central Business District, situated inside Aljada, Arada’s AED35 billion mixed-use megaproject in Sharjah. In addition to this initial contract, Roberts Co is delivering preconstruction services ahead of site mobilisation across several upcoming Arada developments in both Sharjah and Dubai.

This expansion forms part of Arada’s broader vertical integration strategy. Under the Arada Industries banner, the group has systematically brought building, MEP services, crane management and smart technology capabilities directly under internal corporate control.

Ahmed Alkhoshaibi, Group CEO of Arada: “The arrival of Roberts Co in the UAE allows us to import skills and innovation from elsewhere in the world, and is therefore a significant moment for Arada and for the long-term, strategic way we think about construction. By bringing a tier-one contractor of Roberts Co’s calibre directly into our development process, we are able to embed exceptional delivery expertise from the earliest stages of design, reducing costs, improving efficiencies and raising the bar on quality across our portfolio. Roberts Co will complement rather than replace the contractor relationships we have developed across our UAE projects, and our door remains firmly open to the best the market has to offer.”

George Kostas, CEO of Roberts Co, said: “Roberts Co was built on a simple belief — that we build a better way. Bringing that belief to the UAE, and to a pipeline of projects of the scale and quality that Arada has assembled here, is an extraordinary opportunity. We have established our core team, we have our first project confirmed, and we are looking forward to showing this market what Roberts Co can bring to some of the most ambitious construction programmes in the region.”