DUBAI: Dubai has invited International bids for the largest substructure package in the world for its second airport, Al Maktoum International Airport, which is set to become the primary airport for Dubai, as well as the home to Emirates Airline from 2025.
“An unprecedented scale… maybe the biggest ever released in its category,” said Shaikh Ahmad Bin Saeed Al Maktoum, Chairman of Dubai Aviation City Corporation and Dubai Aviation Sector Board, in a statement. “We are targeting an award by early next year. More is yet to come and everyone is looking forward to a busy 2019.”
The substructure package consists of construction works related to the foundations, basement walls, tunnels, columns, slabs on grade and apron slabs of the first 2.7-km-long concourse, the West Terminal Building, the short-term car-park and the staff car-park, said a statement from Dubai Aviation Engineering Projects (DAEP), which has officially embarked into the tendering of the mega substructure project.
The expansion contract for Al Maktoum, which is expected to become the world’s largest airport, will be awarded during the first quarter of 2019, stated the emirate’s aviation planning and development facilitator.
The issued package consists of over 1.7 million square meters of connected basement footprint to house the future services of the airport, such as people mover tunnels, baggage handling systems, a ground services road network and other technical and support facilities.
It will also include the foundations, basement walls, columns, basement slabs and top slabs for the first 2.7-kilometre long concourse, the West Terminal building, short-term car park and staff car park, with a depth exceeding 18 meters underground and around 5.5 million cubic meters of concrete to be poured.
“DAEP commenced this week interviewing all joint ventures and consortium formed by leading local and international contractors specifically for this job, in order to shortlist those who are prequalified to be invited for the tender which will go out soon,” said a company spokesman.
“We are fully committed to deliver a large-scale airport designed with the capacity to serve the long-term demands of the aviation sector of Dubai while providing the highest level of services and incorporating the most up-to-date innovative technologies, with a vision for Dubai to become the aviation capital of the world,” he added.
