Dubai is reportedly weighing a $33 billion (AED120 billion) mega expansion project at Dubai World Central (DWC), MEED reported.
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The expansion project was initially launched in June 2010 for cargo operations and in October 2013 for passenger flights, as part of a broader strategy to transform DWC into the world’s biggest airport by 2050, with a handling capacity of up to 255 million passengers annually.
According to reports, the initial phase of the project expected to be completed by 2030 will increase the airport’s capacity to 130 million passengers per year, with the total development set to cover an area of 56 square kilometres.
Sources close to the project said that talks among officials are ongoing and potential stakeholders have been advised to prepare for a restart, the report revealed, adding that the project will significantly boost Dubai’s economy.
The project resumption plans were largely propelled by the ongoing rebound in passenger traffic, particularly with the emirate’s flagship international hub, Dubai International Airport outperforming its traffic targets with 66.1 million passengers in 2022.
Moreover, the airport is projected to handle nearly 78 million passengers by year-end, before returning to 2019 levels in 2024.
According to the report, the DWC expansion project was delayed during the pandemic after developers competed for the estimated $2.7 billion substructure contract for Concourse 1 and the West Terminal building, the largest contract tendered for the project.
The contract includes more than 1.7 million square metres of connected basement footprint, with facilities including people-mover tunnels, baggage handling systems, ground services road networks and back-of-house technical and support facilities.
