Indiareit Fund Advisors Ltd, the real estate venture capital fund promoted by Piramal Enterprises, is partnering with Skyline Constructions and Holdings Ltd to jointly develop 16 housing projects in this IT hub and one in Mysore at an estimated cost of Rs.7 billion.

The 2,300-odd residential units, spread over 3.5-million square feet, will be located across the city in upmarket areas such as Whitefield, Kanakapura Road, Bannerghatta and Old Madras Road.

'The multi-sectoral economy, cosmopolitan lifestyle and a booming knowledge sector have made Bangalore a veritable investment destination for real estate development. The growing demand for housing will enable us to hedge risks in funding the projects,' Indiareit chief executive officer Ramesh Jogani told reporters here Wednesday.

The venture fund also plans to invest Rs.2.25 billion in similar Skyline projects in Mangalore, Chennai and Kochi at a later date.

As a result of these projects, Skyline will have a cumulative developed area of 25 million square feet, including five million sq. ft. of commercial space and integrated townships in Bangalore and other cities.

Skyline managing director Avinash Prabhu said Indiareit would bring value and expertise on board besides funds to build dream houses for discerning customers.

From its origins in coffee plantations, the family-owned enterprise has branched out to property development and 'emerged as one of the trusted builders in real estate to be certified as an ISO 9001 company with standards and ethics cemented firmly,' Prabhu said.

Indian cricket captain Rahul Dravid is the brand ambassador of Skyline Constructions.

Skyline has executed about 60 projects covering over four million sq ft in industrial, commercial and residential space in Bangalore, Chennai, Mysore, Mangalore and Kochi during the last two decades.

Indiareit fund is registered under the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) and manages a total corpus of $300 million (Rs.12 billion). It includes an offshore fund in which 3i, a leading global private equity and venture firm, is a strategic investor.