ORLANDO, Fla. — Disney announced Wednesday that it will build its seventh theme park in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. 

The waterfront resort will be located on Yas Island and be Disney’s seventh theme park.

The news was revealed shortly before the company’s second-quarter earnings call. 

The theme park will be built and run by the developer Miral, with Disney licensing its intellectual property for the project and providing development and management services, according to a regulatory filing. 

Disney, which won’t provide any capital, will earn royalties based on the project’s revenues and will also earn service fees.

“This is a thrilling moment for our company as we announce plans to build an exciting Disney theme park resort in Abu Dhabi, whose culture is rich with an appreciation of the arts and creativity,” said Robert A. Iger, Chief Executive Officer, The Walt Disney Company. “As our seventh theme park destination, it will rise from this land in spectacular fashion, blending contemporary architecture with cutting edge technology to offer guests deeply immersive entertainment experiences in unique and modern ways. Disneyland Abu Dhabi will be authentically Disney and distinctly Emirati – an oasis of extraordinary Disney entertainment at this crossroads of the world that will bring to life our timeless characters and stories in many new ways and will become a source of joy and inspiration for the people of this vast region to enjoy for generations to come.”

The project is the first new Disney theme park or resort revealed since Shanghai Disneyland was first announced in 2010. 

Iger, in an interview with CNBC, declined to specify when exactly the park would open but said Disney imagineers have already begun designing the destination. 

“We’re not pinning down a date yet,” he told CNBC. “It typically takes us between 18 months and two years to design and fully develop and approximately five years to build but we’re not making any commitments right now.”

Disney also noted that around one-third of the world’s population lives within a four-hour flight of UAE. 

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