"Dubai's new airport terminal/ another grandiose project"

Monday, September 27, 2004

Dubai's new airport terminal/ another grandiose project
by Habib Trabelsi
Agence France-Presse


DUBAI,  (AFP) - Dubai International Airport, where five workers were killed
Monday in the construction of its multi-billion dollar state-of-the-art
third terminal, is another grandiose project in the emirate's ambitious bid
to become the region's commercial and tourism hub.

The Gulf emirate of about 1.2 million people has embarked on a strategy of
headlong expansion under the Maktoum sheikhs, committing billions of dollars
to the pursuit of phenomenal growth.

In just 25 years, a sleepy pearl and trading outpost has been transformed
into a dynamic regional economic and tourist power with world-class
infrastructure.

But Dubai's economic boom is realised by tens of thousands of poorly paid
Asian workers, who live in often dire conditions and labour throughout the
soaring summer temperatures of nearly 50 degrees Celsius (122 degrees
Fahrenheit).

Monday's accident occurred when part of a wall collapsed at the vast airport
construction site, which involves more than 8,000 workers, also leaving 12
labourers injured.

The emirate is one of seven city states that make up the United Arab
Emirates, which has a total population of 3.3 million, 85 percent of them
expatriates, mostly from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Iran, Afghanistan, the
Philippines and Sri Lanka.

The emirate, whose oil resources are running out, wants to become the ideal
tourist destination, luring visitors to marvel at its often outrageous and
colossal multi-billion-dollar projects encouraged by Prime Minister and
ruler of Dubai, Sheikh Maktoum bin Rashid al-Maktoum.

Since launching its extravagant annual "Dubai Shopping Festival" in 1996,
the emirate has embarked on a vast construction project to expand its
airport.

Hotels generated billions of dollars (euros) in revenues in the first half
of 2004, throughout which Dubai expects to attract more than five million
visitors. It expects 15 million a year by 2010.

Passenger traffic at the airport rose by 27 percent in the first half of
this year to 10.41 million people. Dubai expects to handle annual traffic of
about 30 million passengers by 2010 and more than 60 million by 2020.

The 4.1 billion dollar airport expansion will see the new terminal used
exclusively for passengers of Dubai-owned Emirates airline.

The airline, which operates a fleet of 67 aircraft, reported record profits
of 476 million dollars for the financial year to March 31, an increase of 67
percent on the previous year, despite war in Iraq and SARS in Asia.

For its part, Dubai Duty Free announced record sales of 380 million dollars
for 2003, a 24 percent increase over the previous year. The airport showcase
expects the results will push its global airport retail ranking above its
current fifth position.

The new terminal, on which construction began more than a year ago, is
scheduled for completion in 2006. It is designed by France's Aeroports de
Paris (ADP) in the shape of a giant plane wing almost one kilometre (1,100
yards) in length.

UAE-British consortium Al-Naboodah Laing last year won a
multi-million-dollar engineering, procurement and construction (EPC)
contract under the four-billion-dollar airport expansion.

Civil aviation chief and Emirates' chairman Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed
al-Maktoum announced in July that a second airport is to be built in Dubai
to be operational at the end of 2006.

The new airport will be located near the free zone of Jebel Ali, 50
kilometres (30 miles) out of town, and will initially handle only freight
before opening up to chartered flights.


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