UPDATE 1-UAE's Aldar to develop $3 bln auto property project

(Adds value of project, quote)

By Stanley Carvalho

ABU DHABI, April 3 (Reuters) - Abu Dhabi's Aldar Properties ALDR.AD said on Thursday it will develop a $3 billion real estate project in the United Arab Emirates dedicated to the car trade, including service centres and a museum.

State-controlled Aldar, which is spearheading a construction boom in the UAE's capital city, plans to complete the project in four years, the company said in a statement given to reporters in Abu Dhabi.

"Motor World will offer a place for all car-related retail transactions to take place under one roof," the company said. The project, on the outskirts of Abu Dhabi city, includes offices, hotels and homes for 30,000 people, it said.

Aldar Chairman Ahmed Ali al-Sayegh said the project will cost 11 billion dirhams, taking the total value of schemes the company is developing $70 billion, he said.

Abu Dhabi, the largest member of the UAE federation, is reaping a windfall from six years of rising oil prices, which it is using to diversify its economy from oil by developing residential, leisure and cultural projects.

Shares of Aldar more than tripled last year, though are down about 10 percent this year.

Deutsche Bank expects Aldar's first-quarter profit to more than double to 1.1 billion dirhams, compared with 450.7 million in the year-earlier period, according to a Reuters survey of analysts. [ID:nL31727798] (Writing by James Cordahi; Editing by David Holmes)