Emirates airline to invest $12 billion in DWC airport, Sheikh Ahmed says

Emirates airline is to invest up to $12 billion in its future home at the new terminal at Al Maktoum International Airport (DWC).

The airline will spend billions on infrastructure, including catering facilities and aircraft hangars, Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed, chairman and chief executive of Emirates Airline and Group, said at a media event on Tuesday at Dubai Airshow.

The $35 billion airport terminal at DWC is under construction and the first phase is expected to be finished by 2032 with a capacity to handle 150 million passengers a year. Once fully completed, the airport is set to reach a capacity of 260 million annual passengers.

Dubai International Airport, Emirates airline's current home base, is expected to handle 95.3 million passengers by the end of this year and reach the 100 million mark in the next 18 months, Paul Griffiths, chief executive of Dubai Airports, said in October.

Sheikh Ahmed's comments came after UK Export Finance (UKEF) on Tuesday issued an expression of interest for up to $3.5 billion in funding for the expansion of DWC.

UKEF is a government department and the nation’s export credit agency, which partners with private sector finance providers to grow UK exports and international trade.

The announcement, made during a ceremony at Dubai Airshow, marks the first international expression of interest in the mega-p