A consortium has won a $2.9 billion (approximately £1.9 billion) contract to construct a midfield terminal at Abu Dhabi International Airport, which will be of particular interest to international moving companies.
The multi-organisational venture, which is made up of Arabtec Construction LLC, the Turkish construction group TAV and the Consolidated Contractors International Company, which has headquarters in Greece, will begin development of the terminal in the third quarter of 2012.
It is envisaged that the project will be completed over a five-year period, resulting in a 700,000-square-metre building that is of strategic importance in the UAE capital.
One of the major reasons for the development is because of the increased traffic at the airport, with Abu Dhabi fast becoming a key area for international business, as well as attracting tourists. The new terminal will allow the airport to handle 30 million passengers a year.
“Abu Dhabi Airports Company (Adac) is looking ahead to an exciting five years of growth focusing on increasing traffic at Abu Dhabi International Airport and on expanding the airport’s infrastructure to support this growth,” added Ali Al Mansoori, chairman of Adac.
The construction of the terminal is divided into two key phases. The first phase, which will take around four years, will be dedicated purely to construction. The second stage, known as the Operational Readiness Assessment phase, will focus on testing the terminal to ensure it is ready to cope with operations right from the start.
“Adac is playing a key strategic and operational role in ensuring that Abu Dhabi’s integrated infrastructure system across air, rail, road and sea has sufficient capacity to cater for the increasing numbers of travellers expected as part of the emirate’s long-term economic and tourism strategies,” a spokesman for the company stated.
The project is part of an ever-wide move to diversify Abu Dhabi’s economy and move it away from a dependence on just oil. Billions of pounds are being invested in industry, tourism and infrastructure to modernise the city.
Professionals looking for assistance when moving to Abu Dhabi should consider getting in touch with Cadogan Tate, a specialist in international shipping.