Chinese company inks pact for Dubai Metro

Dubai: China Architectural Engineering, Inc., a leader in the design, engineering, fabrication and installation of high-end curtain wall systems, on Monday announced that it has signed a contract worth approximately $50 million to build external envelopes for stations on the Red Line of the Dubai Metro System.

The company also announced that it expects to be awarded contracts in the range of $80-$100 million for auxiliary structures on the same transit line.

Under the signed contract, CAE will design, engineer, fabricate and install external envelopes for eight out of 23 Red Line stations. Under the pending contract, it will build external envelopes, including entranceways, walkways, bridges and parking lots, for associated facilities of the Red Line, including passenger walkways and bridges.

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When completed, the Dubai Metro system will be the longest fully automated rail system in the world. The Red Line is the first of the system's four lines.

Work on both Dubai projects is expected to be finished by the second quarter of 2009. Revenue from them will be recognised in the last three quarters of 2008 and the first two quarters of 2009.

CAE chairman and CEO Ken Y. Luo said, "The Dubai Metro project promises to be our largest effort yet outside China, with potential revenue far beyond that of the initial contract. As a major step forward in CAE's Middle East expansion strategy; it will serve as an announcement of CAE's arrival in one of the largest construction markets in the world. Also, this project is only for the first stage of the Dubai Metro System.

CAE has a long-term commitment to the Middle East and foresees significant future demand for construction projects from Dubai and other cities and countries in this region. We are in the process of setting up a subsidiary in Dubai this year to capture this significant demand."

The Dubai Metro project is the flagship project of the RTA (Road and Transport Authority - Dubai) with investments for the first phase alone totalling over $4.2 billion. It will be the first system of its kind in the Middle East. The goals of the Dubai Metro System are to provide an alternative mode of transport to ease congestion, save travelling time and reduce pollution.