Gulf Construction Online - Etihad Rail outlines plans for network

UAE Focus

Al Sowaidi ... at the press conference.

Etihad Rail outlines plans for network

01 April 2011

THE master developer and operator of the UAE’s first railway network has revealed its future plans for the nationwide railway project and its phases of implementation, while unveiling its new corporate identity at a press conference last month.

Etihad Rail – formerly known as Union Railway – said its first route will be completed in early 2013 in time for the first freight shipment of granulated sulphur from Shah and Habshan to Ruwais, to be exported in partnership with Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc).

At the press conference held at Yas Hotel Abu Dhabi, Nasser Al Sowaidi, chairman of the board of directors of Etihad Rail, and Mattar Al Tayer, the company’s vice chairman also revealed the railway’s social, economic and environmental benefits, and highlighted the rationale behind the new corporate identity.

The new corporate identity incorporates the colours of the UAE flag, symbolising the national significance of the railway network and portraying the company’s values, objectives and aspirations.

The officials also indicated that Etihad Rail intends to finalise design for the second and third phases of the railway project by end of this year for construction to begin during second half of 2012. The company aims to transport approximately 50 million tonnes of various goods and 16 million passengers in the initial stages.

Al Sowaidi said Etihad Rail network aims to provide the country with a modern, safe, and integrated railway network. “The UAE has a long and proud tradition as a trading economy and we at Etihad Rail are developing an extensive rail network to support this and further the growth of the UAE as a logistics hub for businesses and industries in the region and beyond,” he said.

The rail network is expected to extend up to 1,200 km in length, connecting the UAE emirates and linking the country to Saudi Arabia (via Ghweifat) in the west and to Oman (via Al Ain) in the east. Built in line with the latest technologies in accordance with the highest international standards, the railway will also form a vital part of the greater GCC railway network – facilitating trade, opening up communication channels, and fostering economic and infrastructure development.

According to Al Sowaidi, the project will not only contribute to the overall development of the UAE, but also help cut pollution emitted from freight vehicles as well as significantly decrease accidents on highways.

Al Tayer said the mixed-traffic railway network is set to be developed in three phases: Phase One of the project incorporates the Shah-Habshan-Ruwais route – with the link between Habshan and Ruwais scheduled to be completed in early 2013 and that between Shah and Habshan by the end of 2014; Phase Two involves the construction of the remainder of the Abu Dhabi emirate network and a connection to Dubai – covering vital areas such as Mussaffah and the Khalifa and Jebel Ali ports; and Phase Three entails the implementation of the rest of the network in the Northern Emirates.

The Dh40 billion ($10.9 billion) project will, at the moment, be funded through direct investment from shareholders, said Richard Bowker, CEO of Etihad Rail.

Commenting on the tender and contract status for Phase One of the project, Bowker said: “The first phase has three main contracts and they are all out to tender. The first is for the actual infrastructure itself – that is for the earthworks, the structures, the civils work, the track, the systems – that went out to tender on March 1, 2011.

“The other two contracts which are very important but smaller are for the rolling stock. All of those three contracts are out in the market and it is our hope and intention that before the summer we will be able to place all those contracts.

Bowker put the scheduled completion date for Phase Two at the end of 2015 or early 2016 and for Phase Three in 2017 or 2018. “Our intention is to complete the whole railway in seven or eight years and that ties with the wider GCC strategy.”

Commenting on the environmental implications of the project, Bowker said: “We have gone for diesel technology with the locomotives. At first you might say that is not as clean as electric but the reality is that over the last 10 years or so diesel technology has improved immeasurably so now in terms of emission and particulates, diesel technology is extremely good.

“The big benefit of the railway is getting the trucks off the road in the first place. We can carry around 300 trucks worth of material in a single train and that train will produce 80 per cent less emissions than the trucks that would have been needed to transport that load,” he said.

Etihad Rail has an initial capital funding of Dh1 billion ($272 million) and is 70 per cent owned by the Government of Abu Dhabi and 30 per cent by the federal government.