UAE: The manufacturer in a consortium with Limak and Mapa, Turkiye, was selected to build the turnkey Dubai Metro Blue Line.
The contract envisages the supply of 28 unmanned trains, signalling, power supply, communication systems and the construction of a partially underground 30 km long line with 14 stations and a depot. The revenue service is scheduled to begin in autumn 2029.
The contract is valued at AED 20.5 bln ($5.6 bln). The next lowest bid of the consortium involving CAF was 8% more expensive. The tender saw also Alstom, Siemens Mobility, Hitachi Rail and Hyundai Rotem as part of other consortia.
The Dubai Metro was inaugurated in 2009. Currently, it consists of two lines, with 129 unmanned trains by Kinki Sharyo and Alstom. CRRC entered the UAE market in 2023, when it signed a contract with the operator Etihad Rail to supply three push-pull diesel trains.
