New Delhi, June 16 (IANS) A high profile project being developed by Unitech in Mumbai on the lines of Canary Wharf in London and Battery Park in New York will now have Lehman Brothers Real Estate Developers as a 50-percent partner with an investment of $175 million. The investment will be for the first phase of about one million square feet of office space project being set up on the Western Expressway of Mumbai, near the fast-expanding Bandra-Kurla complex, Unitech said in a statement Monday.

The project is being jointly developed by the New Delhi-based Unitech and its Mumbai partners, the Western Expressway JV, on 18 million square feet for mixed use, with office, retail, hotel and residential components.

The project is being touted as as one of the most high profile developments in the city, to be developed on the lines of Roppongi Hills in Tokyo, Canary Wharf in London, and Battery Park in New York by architecture firm Skidmore, Owings and Merrill.

“Unitech and Lehman Brothers intend to expand the relationship by considering future investments in subsequent phases of this project, as well as in additional projects,” the Unitech statement said.

The realty sector that is facing a funds crunch to complete their projects has seen many such private equity transactions to complete their projects. Parsvnath Developers also sold 30-percent equity for their commercial project in Mumbai.