Global professional services consultancy Turner & Townsend has won a key contract to provide cost management services for the expansion of Dubai’s Al Maktoum International Airport at Dubai South.

Part of a wider $32-billion development programme, the expansion of the existing passenger terminal – originally opened in 2013 – will include a larger immigration hall providing 55 control counters, an extended departure area with 91 check-in desks and an extra 12 boarding gates and lounges, a new outbound baggage handling building, and additional parking and approach roads.

Turner & Townsend said it was awarded the contract by Dubai Aviation Engineering Projects (DAEP), the engineering arm of Dubai Aviation City Corporation.

The independent consultancy, which has successfully delivered previous projects for DAEP, said it has a firm grasp of the company’s protocols and processes linked to cost planning, procurement and commercial management.

Moreover, Turner & Townsend has worked with major airport programmes on every continent, totalling more than 140 projects, valued at $35 billion, in 19 countries, it added.

Mike Collings, the managing director, Middle East for Turner & Townsend, said: "We’re honoured to be working so closely with DAEP once again, and this commission further strengthens our aviation profile in the Middle East."

"Our experience of delivering complex programmes in live airports will help us run the ongoing expansion while minimising the impact on day-to-day operations, and allow DAEP to plan for future growth," noted Collings.

"We have built a strong reputation working on some of the world's largest aviation projects, and I'm delighted that we are now building momentum in the rapid growth of Dubai as an international hub for air travel," he added.-TradeArabia News Service