Dubai’s Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) has announced that the Sheikh Rashid Bin Saeed Corridor Improvement Project has reached the 75% completion mark.

According to a WAM report, the project, which extends eight kilometres along Ras Al Khor Road from the intersection of Dubai – Al Ain Road to the intersection of Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Road, includes works such as the construction of bridges extending two kilometres, widening Ras Al Khor Road from three to four lanes in each direction, and building two-lane service roads on both sides.

“The project aims to increase the capacity of Ras Al Khor Road to 10,000 vehicles per hour, slash the travel time from 20 minutes to about seven minutes, enhance traffic safety and flow, and eliminate the existing overlapping traffic spots. The project serves a host of major development projects inhabited by 650,000 residents namely The Lagoons, Dubai Creek, Meydan Horizon, Ras Al Khor, Al Wasl, and Nad Al Hamar Complex,” said Mattar Al Tayer, Director-General and Chairman of the Board of Executive Directors, RTA.

In April 2022, the RTA unveiled its five-year sustainability plan for Dubai.

“The project also includes improving the intersection of Nad Al Hamar Road with Ras Al Khor Road to enhance its capacity to 30,000 vehicles per hour by constructing a two-lane bridge extending 988m to enable free left-side turns of traffic inbound from Nad Al Hamar Road towards Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Road.

“It also involves the construction of another two-lane bridge extending 115m to serve the traffic inbound from Nad Al Hamar to Ras Al Khor Road in the direction of Dubai – Al Ain Road. Works also include the construction of a two-lane tunnel extending 368m to enable right-side turns from Ras Al Khor Road to Nad Al Hamar, improving the existing intersection, and widening the existing turns,” Al Tayer added.

The project has been divided into several phases. In 2021, the RTA completed the construction of a three-lane bridge extending 740m leading to the Western entrance to Dubai Creek – Dubai Creek Harbour. The bridge connects the traffic inbound from Dubai – Al Ain Road and Al Khail Road, heading East to the Dubai Creek – Dubai Creek Harbour, with a capacity of 7,500 incoming vehicles per hour.

In May, the said it plans to extend dedicated bus and taxi lanes over a five-year period.

“The Sheikh Rashid bin Saeed Corridor Improvement Project is one of the biggest undertaken by the RTA. In future, it will include the construction of Sheikh Rashid bin Saeed Crossing, which is a bridge crossing over the Dubai Creek to link Al Jaddaf in Bur Dubai with the street extending between Dubai Creek Project and Dubai Festival City.”

“RTA has also constructed a new 1.5km road of four lanes in each direction along with entry and exit points to and from the newly completed areas and buildings to facilitate the movement of traffic inbound from Nad Al Hamar – Ras Al Khor Roads intersection,” Al Tayer remarked.

“The new roads and bridges network contributed to streamlining the traffic flow to the newly completed housing units at Dubai Creek by linking them with the surrounding roads. The new roads were also fitted with a lighting network of 108 streetlight poles. Work is currently underway to construct a 640-metre bridge to ensure smooth traffic movement from the Dubai Creek Harbour project towards Ras Al Khor Road with a capacity of about 3,100 vehicles per hour,” he concluded.

In July, the RTA said that the majority of construction was completed on roads across three residential districts in Al Quoz 2, Nad Al Sheba 2 and Al Barsha South 3.

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Source: ME Construction News

Terex Materials Processing (MP) has announced the acquisition of Canada-based ProAll, a specialist producer of mobile volumetric concrete mixers.

ProAll’s volumetric mixers provide make-to-order, mobile concrete delivery that eliminate concerns over delivery time between a concrete plant and a job site by delivering ingredients that are mixed locally and to the exact specifications of each job. While a conventional mixer truck can deliver within two to three hours of the plant, a volumetric mixer can deliver anywhere without the concern over material degrading or setting up in the back of a mixer, the company explained.

In February 2021, Prinoth introduces a tracked concrete mixer for off-road construction projects.

With ProAll already selling to non-US markets, the acquisition adds a new dimension to the current portfolio and is expected to create significant new opportunities for international growth.

The addition of these products will help Terex expand its presence in US concrete markets, where ProAll joins Terex Advance, a producer of front discharge mixer trucks, and Terex Bid-Well, specialists in roller pavers for bridge and canal work, as businesses in the MP portfolio.

Kieran Hegarty, President Terex Materials Processing commented: “ProAll will provide us with exciting prospects to expand into new markets and grow our presence in concrete. We look forward to embarking on this journey together with our new colleagues in Alberta and Texas.”

In September 2021, Renault Trucks supplied new K400-based mixers to Oryx Mix, while in December, it completed the delivery of 10 units of K 380 P6X4 Concrete Mixers to Sijimix.

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The team behind Middle East Construction News (MECN) has extended the deadline for the MECN reader survey to 31 August 2022. Everyone that participates will stand an equal chance to win a brand-new Apple Watch – the winner will be announced three days after the survey officially closes.

The reader survey comprises 13 multiple choice questions; following the close of the survey, the MECN team will use the feedback to redesign and relaunch the website later in the year. Readers can participate in the survey by clicking here.

“The MECN survey will help us make informed decisions about the future look and feel of the website, and will help us focus on the content that you, our valuable readers, are interested in reading about. We’ve already had plenty of long term – and new – readers respond to the survey but, we’ve also been inundated with messages from those away on their summer breaks asking for the survey deadline to be extended. Taking this into account, we’ve now extended the deadline to 31 August,” says Jason Saundalkar, Head of Content at Middle East Construction News.

“The website was launched over 10 years ago to be a trusted source of information for construction professionals and that continues to be the driving principal. We plan to maintain our marketing leading position through various means and the redesign and relaunch is part of that strategy,” he adds.

Share your feedback with the MECN team by clicking here.

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Source: ME Construction News

South Korea’s Doosan Enerbility has said that it has won the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract for the Shuaibah 3 Independent Water Project in Saudi Arabia. The $640mn desalination project is being developed via a special purpose vehicle (Shuaibah Three Water Desalination Company), which was launched by Saudi utility developer ACWA Power and Water and Electricity Holding Company (Badeel), which is owned by Saudi Arabia’s PIF sovereign wealth fund.

According to reports, the EPC contract will see Doosan Enerbility (formerly Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction) build a desalination plant capable of producing 600,000cu/m of water per day and a 60MW solar power plant.

Project work is expected to start in September 2022, with completion scheduled for May 2025. Once completed, the desalination plant will supply potable water to two million people. The solar farm will provide electric power to the desalination plant.

In May 2022, an Acwa Power-led consortium said it scored a major Saudi water deal worth $650mn in Jubail City.

In June 2022, ACWA Power, Shuaibah Water Electricity Company (SWEC), and Saudi Water Partnership Company (SWPC), the off taker of Shuaibah 3 IWPP, signed an agreement to restructure the Shuaibah 3 Independent Water and Power Project (IWPP).

The agreement covers the conversion and replacement of the IWPP from an energy-intensive power generation and thermal desalination facility to a greenfield seawater reverse osmosis (SWRO) desalination plant under the name Shuaibah 3 Independent Water Project (IWP).

As such, operations of Shuaibah 3 Independent Water and Power Project (IWPP) will cease in 2025, saving nearly 45m tons of carbon dioxide emissions and 22m barrels of light crude oil annually.  The Shuaibah 3 IWP aims to establish the world’s largest reverse osmosis desalination facility in Shuaibah, located 110 km south of Jeddah.

ACWA Power said that the switch from thermal to RO will reduce the power needed to desalinate seawater by 70%. The new 25-year water purchase agreement (WPA) is valued at nearly $800mn.

Over $2bn in water desalination projects were said to be underway in the UAE in May, while later in the month, an Engie-led consortium broke ground on a sustainable desalination plant in Saudi Arabia.

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Source: ME Construction News

The Transguard Group has just inaugurated a new 270sqm medical facility within its largest accommodation facility, Jebel Ali 7 residence.

The 10-bed clinic is open from 7am to 9:30pm and is said to be staffed by male and female medical professionals who speak a variety of languages, including English, Hindi, Tamil, Nepalese, Arabic, Urdu and more. The new clinic is said to include an x-ray room, pharmacy and other dedicated specialist spaces.

The official opening of the clinic was celebrated by Saeed al Marzouqi, Acting Managing Director, Transguard Group; Salim AlMaary, Chief Executive Officer, Salubrity Valley Clinic and Pharmacy; Dr Marwan Al Mulla, CEO of the Health Regulation Sector, Dubai Health Authority; Faris Mohammed AlMaazmi, Director, Clinical Audit and Control Department, Dubai Health Authority.

In July 2022, the group said it had secured over $68mn in facilities management contracts.

“Jebel Ali is home to a large percentage of our site-based colleagues and providing convenient medical care, where and when they need it, has long been a priority. This new clinic allows us to bring another convenient medical point of care directly to our staff, which allows us an immediate opportunity to meet their needs,” commented Al Marzouqi.

In addition to basic medical assessments and other tests, the in-house medical facilities at this location include a long-term care facility for more serious conditions and illnesses. A regular shuttle bus between Transguard’s Jebel Ali accommodations also provides free transportation to and from both clinics, the firm explained. The company noted that it opened its first primary care clinic in March 2021.

Together, the two clinics provide preliminary medical care for more than 21,000 Transguard staff living in and around the Jebel Ali area. A third clinic in Sonapur is currently under construction and is expected to open in 2024, the firm remarked.

In July, Verdantix urged building facility managers to secure building systems against cyber-attacks and, later in the month, said employers must take steps to protect staff from physical climate risks.

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Source: ME Construction News

XCMG is bringing its largest exhibition to date at Bauma 2022, including a new fully electric all-terrain crane, excavator and loader, the company has announced. The latest products are expected to offer leading advantages in large-capacity batteries, quick charging and zero emissions.

“XCMG is making the new energy transition and transformation, advancing our sustainable strategy for green low-carbon and intelligent new infrastructure and vigorously laying out the development for electronic control, battery and electric drive technologies, we hope to show our latest achievements in the new energy construction machinery development to global audiences at Bauma 2022,” said by Wang Min, Chairman of XCMG.

In June 2020, XCMG and Cummins said they were collaborating to build an electric excavator prototype.

As part of XCMG’s exhibition, the company will bring its full series of excavators and integrated sets of road machinery equipment as well as hoisting, scraping and piling equipment. Also on display will be its aerial work platforms that have been popular among European customers. All featured models are customised for the construction market in Europe that excels in intelligent technologies, safety guarantee and reliability.

The Bauma trade show is the world’s largest trade fair for construction machinery and will take place from 24 to 30 October in Munich.

In June 2022, XCMG introduced its XGT15000-600S super-scale tower crane for use on mega projects, while in July, it said the world’s largest telescopic wind power-oriented crane had been exported to Europe.

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Source: ME Construction News

Developer Union Properties has announced its consolidated financial results for the three-month period ended 30 June 2022, with the company seeing a net profit for the second quarter, following a net loss in the first quarter of the year.

In a statement, Union Properties said that the company had delivered a net profit of $77,593 in Q2 2022, as compared to a net loss of $3.26mn in Q1 2022. Revenue from contracts with customers remained stable at $ 26.95mn in Q2 2022 compared to the same period last year.

The performance is said to be due to the group’s subsidiaries delivering healthy performance improvements, supported by strong market dynamics in the UAE’s real estate sector. Gross profit for the same period increased by 7% to $3.81mn, the statement continued.

In September 2021, the developer said it had agreed to exit the ownership of the under construction Motor City shopping centre.

Amer Khansaheb, Board Member and Managing Director of Union Properties, commented, “The continued improvement in Union Properties financial performance reflects our success to date in executing our turnaround strategy. We remain laser focused on driving growth and delivering cost efficiencies, particularly at a subsidiary level.”

“Of note, we have launched a number of initiatives to optimise performance across the business, including the consolidation of three of our business units into EDACOM Asset Management, which is expected to deliver significant cost savings over the remainder of the year. The work underway lays a solid foundation for future growth and value creation for our shareholders,” he added.

Khansaheb highlighted the progress made by Union Properties in the execution of its turnaround strategy, delivering significant cost efficiencies during the second quarter of the year. Administrative and general expenses declined by 42% year-on-year to $4.62mn in Q2 2022, and by 32% to $10.07mn in H1 2022, compared to the same period last year.

The developer broke ground on the first phase of a new development in Motor City in September 2021.

As part of its ongoing strategy to improve efficiency and productivity across the business, Union Properties merged three of its existing business units – EDACOM Owners Management Association, Uptown Mirdiff Mall, and Al Etihad Cold Store – into one single entity, EDACOM Asset Management. The consolidation is expected to improve profitability by driving efficient resource and asset utilisation, economies of scale and cost rationalisation. The company expects to realise additional one-time cost savings of $1.90mn over the next 12 months from the reorganisation.

Consequently, operating profit increased to $816,768 in Q2 2022 from a loss of $9.80mn for the same period last year. At the net income level, Union Properties delivered a net profit despite incurring finance costs related to legacy debt of $4.35mn, representing 14% of the company’s total consolidated costs. Debt restructuring remains a key priority for Union Properties’ management, the statement added.

“Union Properties owns a vast land bank, in a fast-developing location, which is gaining traction and popularity with investors and residents. Looking ahead, we are cautiously optimistic as we explore a number of development options that we expect to generate long term value for our investors,” Khansaheb concluded, adding that the developer’s focus on efficiency has enabled Union Properties to preserve its book value at $517.2mn, equivalent to AED 0.446 per share.

In October last year, the Dubai Autodrome announced the completion of the $4.49mn Business Park Phase 2 Project.

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Source: ME Construction News

In an exclusive conversation with Middle East Construction News (MECN), Sophia Kee, WSP Middle East’s recently appointed Head of Future Ready – Property & Buildings says that most professionals in the construction industry understand and accept that the industry contributes significantly to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions during operations and construction. The comment was made in response to a question about awareness on the topic within the regional construction industry.

Having said that, Kee reckons there is an issue that needs to be considered more carefully, “I think there’s a potential lack of information whilst selecting and procuring materials and fully understanding the embodied carbon from cradle-to-cradle within a product.”

“Where some green building certifications once promoted locally-sourced materials, we now have further transparency on embodied carbon during extraction, production, transportation, decommissioning, and recyclability of materials. For instance, there is lower embodied carbon in timber shipped over from Japan than locally produced steel beams,” she explains.

In an earlier interview with MECN on GHG emissions, global warming and sustainability, Kee noted, “We have 93% certainty within the next five years of hitting new temperature highs”.

Shifting focus to emissions within the domestic space, she comments, “I believe there’s greater room for awareness regarding the decisions we make as owners and occupiers and the wider contribution to global climate change. The main behaviour drivers for turning off lights, turning down the thermostat, or using less water motivates people at a more intimate level, for example reducing their utility bills.”

She highlights, “Messaging that the choices we make in the most affluent countries creates more tangible physical risks for societies in vulnerable climatic locations is apparent due to sea levels rising, more extreme weather events, and increased food and water scarcity.”

Kee says that society only needs to look as far as the Pacific Ocean to witness the drastic, real effects of a warming world on exposed, vulnerable island nations. She relays her thought through her experiences at the recently concluded EXPO 2020 Dubai.

In May 2022, a report by the WMO said that there’s a 50:50 chance of global temperature temporarily reaching the 1.5-degrees Celsius threshold in the next five years.

“Throughout EXPO 2020 Dubai, I was fortunate enough to experience the climate emergency first-hand whilst visiting Tuvalu’s pavilion. Sitting down and conversing with the pavilion’s hosts and hearing their environmental plea to help protect their homes, their livelihoods, and local economy from sinking and displacement was deeply powerful. EXPO 2020 was a catalyst for bringing these essential discussions, and need for immediate climate action, into the public forum.”

“However, it’s often easy to overlook climate issues until we’re faced with them ourselves. In the Middle East, the vulnerability of GCC cities to warmer annual temperatures, water scarcity, and rising sea levels is becoming more prominent, especially given that the majority of critical infrastructure and economic hubs are coastal and therefore prone to sea level rise,” she warns.

Asked about what some of the biggest challenges are with reducing GHG emission in the built environment, Kee circles back to the carbon footprint of construction materials.

“The biggest challenge is our industrial carbon footprint from traditional construction materials and methods typically used to deliver projects in the Middle East. The main materials used locally are steel, aluminium and cement. Energy intensive industries produce basic materials and are responsible for up to 22% of global emissions. The associated emissions keep increasing as demand for these materials increase, particularly when the built environment is developing at such a fast pace in the Middle East.”

She continues, “Changing to zero-emission production routes will come at a cost. Steel is expected to become 20-to40% more expensive if produced from renewable hydrogen sources. In turn, there is zero to little information regarding the green footprint of materials, and no consumer demand unless driven by a client or green building certification program.”

As a general rule of thumb, the material related credits during certification are the most challenging to obtain, with significant supply chain challenges to achieve these aspirations of recycled content and environmental product declarations, she points out.

Discussing what the industry can do in short order to noticeably cut GHG emissions, she comments, “Workmanship and lack of quality can be a real issue in the region, particularly with thermal bridging, lack of air tightness and underperforming facades, where systems are not installed as designed and specified. This results in higher thermal gains, alongside increased energy consumption, for space cooling than projected in design stages. Since operational energy is a high contributor to emissions, this would be a good place to start.”

“In addition, to reduce the embodied carbon when extracting, producing, and constructing a façade system, and ensuring a properly thermally broken and airtight façade is installed, modular off-site assembled systems have twofold benefits in addressing GHG emissions on projects. There are two sides to this, as the ability to modify and upgrade a modular system is far more challenging than with a stick system that can be demounted,” she concludes.

In July, AESG’s Lindsey Malcolm told MECN that a longer-term perspective to decision making key to tackling GHG emissions.

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Source: ME Construction News

Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) has announced two contracts totalling more than $3.4bn have been awarded to ADNOC Drilling, for the hiring and deployment of eight jack-up offshore rigs.

The contracts, valued at $1.5bn and $1.9bn respectively, awarded by ADNOC Offshore, will support the expansion of ADNOC’s crude oil production capacity to the level of five million barrels per day (mmbpd) by 2030, which is said to in-turn enable gas self-sufficiency for the UAE. Moreover, over 80% of the value of the awards is slated to flow back into the UAE’s economy, courtesy of ADNOC’s In-Country Value (ICV) programme, supporting local economic growth and diversification.

In September 2019, ADNOC Drilling completed its first offshore well.

With a duration of 15 years, the contracts will play a key role in helping ADNOC Drilling’s rig fleet to work with ADNOC and its strategic international partners to progressively unlock Abu Dhabi’s offshore oil and gas resources – where untapped reserves are said to be among the largest in the world.

Dr. Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber, Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology and ADNOC Managing Director and Group CEO, said, “This world-leading investment will significantly expand our drilling activity to accelerate growth, drive value and responsibly unlock the UAE’s resources in response to globally rising demand for energy. ADNOC Drilling’s state-of-the-art fleet and market-leading capabilities, will be a key enabler as ADNOC strengthens its position as a leading low-cost and low-carbon energy producer.”

The jack-up rigs will be hired along with manpower and equipment to support drilling operations across ADNOC’s offshore fields, which account for about half of ADNOC’s production capacity. ADNOC Drilling is the largest national drilling company in the Middle East by rig fleet size, with 105 owned rigs, including 27 offshore jack-up units, comprising one of the largest operational jack-up fleets globally.

In June 2022, Saipem was awarded $1.25bn in onshore and offshore contracts in the Middle East, while in July, a new MDEA plant was announced in Saudi Arabia, following a JV deal between Dow and Al-Hejailan Group.

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Source: ME Construction News

Danube Home International (DHI) has signed a master franchise agreement with Hyvec Group to expand Danube Home into Mauritius. The expansion into Mauritius follows the brand’s move into Nepal and Bangladesh a few months earlier. DHI is the global franchise division of interior décor and home improvement brand of the Danube Group.

According to Danube, the Hyvec Group plans to open three franchise stores in the next year in Mauritius, including a large-format showroom spread across 50,000sqft that will cater to residents and tourists. The first showroom is expected to open in November this year.

“Our global expansion means we will export more home décor products to the rest of the world from the UAE that will not only boost UAE’s export and re-export but also will help the UAE economy grow further. This will also further strengthen economic relations between the UAE and Mauritius and we are proud to play a small role in this,” said Adel Sajan, Group Managing Director of Danube Home.

In March 2022, Danube launched a 1,000 unit affordable housing project in Dubai.

He added, “This demonstrates our group strength in expanding at a very challenging time when global economic growth forecast comes with inflationary pressures. However, we have learnt to convert challenges into opportunities and have continued our growth journey amid challenging environment. Our partnership with Hyvec and expansion into Mauritius will help offer a wider choice to the consumers of the Indian Ocean-island nation and we look forward to a fruitful collaboration.”

The firm says that with more than 25,000 types of home décor and furnishing products, it is ranked among the top retailers in the Gulf Region, and has been averaging a 25% growth rate since 2011. It is expanding worldwide through organic growth, investment and through franchise partnership.

Ehsan Chady, Chairman of Hyvec Group explained, “Danube Home is another feather in our cap and we are proud to be bring this prestigious global name to Mauritius – that will offer a wide choice in furnishing and home décor to our clients. Danube Home has a wide collection of products to the extent of 25,000 types of products – which gives the customers the widest choice in furnishing and home décor sector.”

“Our consumers will be very delighted to find all types of home décor products under one roof in Mauritius. We have a robust growth plan for Danube Home in Mauritius. We look forward to a very fruitful partnership with Danube Group to develop the brand in our country further,” Chady stated.

Danube Home is currently present across 12 countries including UAE, Oman, Egypt, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, Rwanda, Uganda, Nepal, Sudan, Nigeria and India.

Sayed Habib, Director of Danube Home E-Commerce and Franchise remarked, “Mauritius is an important market for Danube Home and its presence will help our brand visibility into not only a new territory, but due to the arrival of international tourists, our products and brand image will also expand to many other countries.”

Habib concluded, “Through our partnership with Hyvec Group, we plan to serve a growing number of consumers and give them a better value with new and innovative space-saving home décor that will give them more livable space per square feet.”

In March 2020, Danube Properties launched a new masterplanned residential project close to International City and, earlier, the Danube Group said it installed a solar power solution at its manufacturing facility in Dubai TechnoPark.

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Source: ME Construction News