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TRANSPORT-
#1- Dubai South to house AED 500 mn luxury vehicle showroom and service center: Dubai South signed an agreement with luxury vehicle importer AGMC to operate an AED 500 mn showroom and service center in Dubai South, Wam reports. The showroom, spanning 33k sqm, will feature BMW, MINI, Rolls Royce, and other luxury car brands, while the service center will be located at the Business Avenue near the VIP Terminal and Al Maktoum International Airport.
The RTA greenlit a plan to construct dedicated buses and taxi lanes spanning 13.1 km across six key streets in Dubai, in a bid to ramp up public transport usage by up to 30% on some roads and reduce the number of buses needed to serve those routes, it said in a statement. The streets include Naif, Sheikh Sabah Al Ahmad Al Jaber Al Sabah, 2nd of December, Al Satwa, Omar bin Al Khattab, and Al Nahda.
The project will extend Dubai's network of dedicated bus lanes from 7 km to 20.1 km, and is scheduled for completion between 2025 and 2027. Changes are expected to slash bus travel times by 24% to 59% during peak hours and improve bus arrival times by 28% to 56%.
AVIATION-
Seasonal flights between Dubai and Skardu, Pakistan, resumed today via Pakistan International Airlines (PIA), after being suspended last August due to harsh weather conditions, the Regional Manager of PIA in Dubai, Zeeshan Ahmed, told Gulf News. The three-hour-long flights will run once weekly on Fridays.
GREEN ENERGY-
Ewec confirms awarding EDF + Kowepco 1.5 GW Al Ajban solar project: The Emirates Water and Electricity Company (Ewec), along with an international consortium comprising France’s EDF and Korea Western Power (Kowepco), has signed a power purchase agreement (PPA) to develop Ewec’s 1.5 GW Al Ajban solar IPP project, a press release reads. The consortium was awarded development rights for the project, with Masdar serving as the local shareholder.
What we know: The development of the project has an estimated investment ticket of around USD 748 mn, according to earlier reports, and is expected to generate around USD 2.24 bn in revenues.
The details: Under the PPA, Ewec will pay solely for the net electrical energy supplied by the plant, with the consortium responsible for designing, financing, building, and operating the plant. The project will be fully commercially operational in 3Q 2026, according to the press release.
