The expansion of Al Maktoum International Airport is beginning to reshape investor interest across the emirate’s southern corridor, with aviation, logistics, employment and residential development combining to create what could become Dubai’s next major property growth area.
According to Provident Estate, the airport expansion is already helping drive demand across Dubai South, Emaar South, Expo City Dubai and Jebel Ali, where business growth, infrastructure investment and new residential projects are gathering pace ahead of the airport’s future expansion.
The company said the combination of transport infrastructure, job creation and population growth is encouraging investors to look beyond Dubai’s established property hotspots.
Al Maktoum International Airport is being expanded at a cost of AED128bn ($34.9bn) and is ultimately designed to accommodate 260 million passengers annually, alongside 12 million tonnes of cargo, five parallel runways and more than 400 aircraft stands.
Its first major phase is expected to provide capacity for approximately 150 million passengers a year, making it one of the world’s largest aviation infrastructure projects.
The expected increase in employment is forecast to drive demand for housing, offices, hospitality, retail and community services throughout southern Dubai.
Loai Al Fakir, CEO of Provident Estate, said: “An AED128bn airport designed for 260 million passengers is not simply an aviation project. It is the foundation of a new economic centre that will influence where companies operate, where employment is created and where future residents choose to live. The most important number for property investors is not passenger capacity alone. It is the scale of business activity, job creation and population growth expected around the airport. As infrastructure and employment move south, residential and commercial demand are likely to follow.”
