UK Firm Leads Race In Abu Dhabi Airport Expansion

June 6, 2006
ADAC's master plan envisions a 220,000 square-metre terminal, midfield between the existing runway and a new one to be built.

Abu Dhabi: The UK's Kohn Pederson Fox Associates has been announced the top finalist in the race for the job of master architect for the Midfield Terminal Complex of Abu Dhabi International Airport.

Abu Dhabi Airports Company has invited the London-based firm for further negotiations to put together a final agreement.

ADAC's master plan envisions a 220,000 square-metre terminal, midfield between the existing runway and a new one to be built two kilometres to the north.

The company recently signed a Dh1 billion contract with Odebrecht Al Jaber, a UAE-Brazilian joint venture, to construct a 4,100 metre runway located 2,000 metres from the existing one.

Work on the Category 111 all-weather runway is to be completed by November next year.

The Midfield Terminal is expected to add 20 million people to the airport's passenger handling capacity when it comes on stream by 2010.

The facility's flexible design allows for capacity expansion to over 50 million people and more than two million tonnes of cargo each year.

The airport's capacity has almost doubled to 6.8 million passengers since last August, following renovation of the main terminal and creation of Terminal 1A and Terminal 2, 900 metres away.