Witteveen+Bos strengthens its position in the Middle East

Witteveen+Bos has acquired the landscape and urban design consultancy firm NLME in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, effective as of 1 February 2021. With this takeover, the Netherlands-based consultancy and engineering firm has expanded its international expertise in the Middle East.

Witteveen+Bos has had a presence in Dubai since 2014. From this location, it works on iconic and sustainable projects throughout the Middle East, such as the Netherlands’ Pavilion for the 2020 World Expo in Dubai, the Port Development of Sohar in Oman, and the Drinking Water Supply Network in Oman.

NLME started as a landscape and urban design firm in Dubai in 2013 and worked on projects including the Opera House and Address Beach Resort in Dubai; the Wave Development in Muscat, Oman; and Sarb Island in Abu Dhabi.

Patrick Blom, managing director of NLME, is proud of the new partnership. 'This step creates new opportunities to expand our activities, both in terms of services and geographically,' he said. 'Witteveen+Bos is a leading engineering and consultancy firm with expertise across a wide field and all over the world. Together we can advise, and design and develop creative and innovative solutions for the world’s major challenges.'

In the Middle East, Witteveen+Bos is primarily active in the fields of ports and marine infrastructure, water shortage, and digital construction. For several reasons, Witteveen+Bos sees significant added value in teaming up with NLME. Climate adaptation and sustainable cities are further areas which Witteveen+Bos will focus on in the region.

Daniël Dusseljee, managing director of Witteveen+Bos Dubai, explained: 'We complement each other excellently in terms of our activities and clients, both public and private. NLME’s expertise in urban development, sustainable design and construction project management will increase our local expertise. We have already been successfully collaborating with NLME for several years and we share an open and highly knowledge- and quality-driven corporate culture.'

NLME will be fully integrated into the Dubai branch of Witteveen+Bos and its management will remain actively involved in the business operations of the Built Environment business line.