Press Announces Advanced PAL™ Negotiations in Morocco

17 December, 2020 / News

Medias24, a reputed business and finance media outlet in Morocco, has reported on Crystal Lagoons expansion in the region, announcing that the multinational innovation firm is currently in advanced negotiations in the country. The following is an extract from the interview with Francisco Matte, Regional Director for Crystal Lagoons.

Has Crystal Lagoons previously built man-made lagoons in Morocco?

Crystal Lagoons is in advanced conversations with investment funds, family offices and large real estate developers to finalize a master agreement to develop the new Crystal Lagoons® revolution, the Public Access Lagoons™ projects, also known as PAL™.

Master agreements involve a relevant number of PAL for different geographical territories. In Morocco, cities such as Marrakech, Casablanca, Rabat, Tangier, Fez and Saidia are some of the locations that we have identified where these projects could be developed.

Public Access Lagoons projects are the new corporate development by Crystal Lagoons that, after revolutionizing the real estate sector for 10 years, is now revolutionizing cities with PAL projects.

These are monumental crystalline lagoons suitable for swimming and water sports, surrounded by beaches, which can be accessed via ticketed-entry. Additionally, thanks to a new technology created by Crystal Lagoons, the bathing areas are maintained at 28°C, at a low cost and in a sustainable way, offering optimal conditions throughout the year, similar to tropical seas. This ensures the lagoons can be used for longer periods of time.

There are models with more or less infrastructure. The most complete ones have spaces for tradeshows, launches, food-halls, a wedding peninsula, multiple stages for concerts that include beaches, terraces and domes, as well as gastronomy, retail, amphitheaters and shows.

PAL have become the business of the future, in which investors take positions for their never-before-seen returns, long-term project security and limited risk, as have proven to be Covid & Amazon-proof.

Also, as these projects are built, they generate a financial pyramid. With a low initial investment, a company can achieve a very high present value.

Additionally, we are negotiating various master agreements for PAL projects, in Botswana, South Africa, Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, Angola and Egypt.

Where does Crystal Lagoons currently have projects in Africa?

In Africa, Crystal Lagoons totals 29 real estate projects anchored by crystalline lagoons. This includes projects in different stages of development.

The most important market is Egypt, with 22 projects in different stages. In fact, the largest crystalline lagoon in the world (12.5 hectares) is in the Egyptian resort of Sharm El Sheikh. Swan Lake North Coast 2 was recently inaugurated and in the coming months Bo Island, Fouka Bay, Azha and Porto Golf.

The second most important market is South Africa. There the partnership with real estate developers, Balwin Properties, has been one of the most fruitful business alliances in the country with five real estate projects in different stages. The most recent is Munyaka, an ultra-luxurious complex, close to Johannesburg, has been praised by the President of the Republic for its infrastructure and urban contribution. Renowned for its commercial performance, with 555 units sold at the launch of the project. The same trend has been registered in other real estate developments anchored by lagoons by Crystal Lagoons, including The Blyde in Pretoria, with record daily sales benefiting Balwin Properties’ global results.

How long do these lagoons take to build?

The construction of one of our crystalline lagoons takes between 8 months and 1 year.

What is the average cost of a crystalline lagoon?

An average lagoon (2 hectares) costs around US$ 2.2 million in direct construction costs. These lagoons have very low operational costs, regardless of the environment they are set up in. However, they generate average revenues that exceed US$ 15 million annually in the case of PAL projects.

How do these projects operate?

Crystal Lagoons receives a percentage of the income from entrance tickets as well as revenue from events.

How did the coronavirus crisis affect Crystal Lagoons?

Contrary to what one might think, the dynamism of the business has not been affected by the pandemic, since these are long-term projects that require at least 18 months to be developed. On the contrary, investors have taken positions, seeing how of these projects have the potential to reactivate the economy.

In fact, this pandemic has increased interest in our projects in urban environments. This is because spaces such as PAL will be particularly necessary in cities after confinement. In the future, certain changes in vacation and social habits are expected to remain. The fear of flying to distant locations will likely continue. Attending highly congested airports and confinement on planes will be less attractive.

People will prefer to unwind and socialize in areas close to their homes, which will entail the development of infrastructure, spaces for recreation and relaxation within the city. Having the possibility of having beach life and recreation on their doorstep reduces many of these risks. This has sparked interest in investors who are already anticipating this trend and moving forward.

Also, these projects have been successful not only because people will avoid traveling, but because a large body of water in the middle of the city is beneficial for physical and mental health, relaxation, well-being and encourages a healthy, active lifestyle.

Crystal Lagoons is an international innovation company, founded by scientist Fernando Fischmann, which has developed a patent-protected technology that allows the construction and maintenance of unlimited-size clear water lagoons at very low costs.

Medias24.com