Renaissance Partners, the investment unit of Moscow-based Renaissance Capital Financial Holdings Ltd., will start building a $5-billion, 2 500-acre residential complex outside the Kenyan capital, Nairobi, this month.

The first stage of the 11-phase project, known as Tatu City, will cost $100-million and is expected to be completed by the fourth quarter of 2013, according to Arnold Meyer, Renaissance Partners’ managing director for real estate in Africa.

Tatu City, located about 9 miles north of Nairobi, will eventually have 62 000 residents. Besides the residential area, phase one, covering 168 acres and involving about 3 000 workers, will include hotels, offices and a shopping mall, Meyer said.

Construction also includes roads, water, electricity, sewerage and probably piped gas, Meyer said. The entire project will be completed in eight to 11 years, depending on demand.

Renaissance Group is taking advantage of sub-Saharan Africa’s economic growth, an expanding urban middle class and a real estate market where supply lags demand.

The group is eyeing projects in Ghana, DRC, Senegal, Nigeria, and broke the ground for Roma Park in Zambia last year.

Source: Bloomberg