Dubai is to build the largest ever Expo site at Jebel Ali Dubai World
Central (DWC) ahead of hosting the event in 2020 at a cost of between
$2-4bn.
And Cynthia Corby, audit partner, construction industry leader,
Deloitte Middle East, revealed ‘secondary infrastructure spend’ will be
upwards of $8bn, and will include construction opportunities in the
transport, hospitality, retail and commercial sectors.
She said: “With Dubai winning Expo 2020 we will see renewed
confidence in the already improving construction industry. In a market
that relies upon confidence and optimism, this is a much-needed stimulus
to create momentum for a renewed development and economic cycle.”
Dubai’s Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) has revealed that they
will fast-track a $1.36bn expansion of Dubai Metro’s Red Line to connect
to DWC.
And Emaar Properties have announced that it has signed a memorandum
of understanding with DWC to develop a massive (13.63mn m2) golf-centred
residential estate adjacent to the area surrounding the Expo 2020 site.
In the company's report: 'Expo 2020: A game changer for Dubai', Corby
said: “These are the first of many announcements regarding large-scale
projects being planned in the wake of the Expo win.
“It only takes a quick analysis of the impact of an expected
additional 20mn international visitors over a six-month period to see
that significant investment in hospitality and retail infrastructure
will be required.”
It is estimated that up to 30% of the potential 300,000 jobs created by Expo 2020 will be in the construction sector alone.
The government has also announced that all new and existing
construction projects are going to be fast- tracked to be ready for
2020.
However, Jesdev Saggar, managing director, Infrastructure and Capital
Projects, Deloitte Corporate Finance Limited, urged a level of caution
as the Emirate continues its recovery from the economic crisis that
enveloped the world in 2009.
He said: “Dubai has been dealing with the close out of its financial
obligations over the downturn years and the lessons learnt during the
close out of these obligations would be usefully applied to avoid this
pressure as the government is to embark on funding future infrastructure
to meet the demands of hosting a global event.
“While challenging, that does not mean that it cannot be done, these
challenges can be met with the right planning and coordination of spend
across all the authorities.
“Expo, like any major event is all about coordination and planning
and its success or failure will be a result of how well the authorities
unite to capitalize on its potential.”
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