Dubai to Resume Work on World’s Largest Airport Project Worth $33 Billion

Dubai is planning to resume the expansion of Al-Maktoum International Airport, said to be its biggest construction project, as reported by MEED.

The project began in 2010 for cargo operations and in 2013 for passengers and is also called Dubai World Central (DWC) with a value of AED 120 billion ($33 billion).

By 2050, Dubai plans to make Al-Maktoum International Airport the world’s largest, with a capacity to accommodate up to 255 million passengers annually.

The first phase of the expansion will raise the airport’s capacity to 130 million passengers per year, while the project will span 56 square kilometers. The initial phase is expected to conclude by 2030.

According to reports, discussions between officials are underway, and potential stakeholders have been advised to prepare for restarting the project.

This will greatly improve Dubai’s economy, which has been suffering from a construction slowdown. Dubai decided to recommence work on expansion after recording a surge in overall traffic, with Dubai International Airport (DXB) receiving 66.1 million passengers in 2022.

Dubai expects that approximately 78 million passengers will use the DXB this year before it returns to pre-pandemic levels in 2024.

The COVID-19 pandemic delayed the progress of DWC as companies competed for the largest contract of approximately $2.7 billion for Concourse 1 and the West Terminal building’s substructure.

The contract comprises more than 1.7 million square meters of interconnected basement footprint and facilities such as baggage handling systems, people-mover tunnels, ground services road networks, and back-of-house technical and support facilities.