Dubai Municipality chairman approves $354m groundwater contract

A contract worth $354m (AED1.3bn) has been approved to develop a rain and groundwater drainage system in Dubai.

Spanning 400km2, the system will be developed for districts around the Al Maktoum International Airport (DWC), Expo 2020 Dubai site, and nearby urban centres.

HH Sheikh Hamdan Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai, UAE Minister of Finance, and chairman of Dubai Municipality, approved the contract award.

According to Hussain Nasser Lootah, the director-general of Dubai Municipality, a second phase will also be developed as part of the project.

Commenting on the project's expansion, he added: "The [...] second phase will bring the total cost to $680.6m (AED2.5bn).

"It entails a deep tunnel network for the collection and disposal of rain and groundwater, and represents a long-term solution that will be sufficient for the next 100 years."

The system has the capacity to treat 6.5 million cubic-metres of water per minute