A highlight for many delegates at the congress was the presentation on the Dubai World Central (DWC) and the Dubai Logistics City (DLC), by DWCCEO Michael Proffitt.
Speaking to a packed ballroom, Proffitt extolled the virtues of Dubai World Central – of which DLC is one component – in what surely is the most ambitious integrated lifestyle, logistics and transportationproject in the world.
“Dubai is being recognised for its visionary approach in developing a world-unique transportation logistics infrastructure which will eventually impact global economy in terms of trade and commerce,’’ said Proffitt.
“The multi-trillion dollar logistics industry is dependent on the vital trade links that connect the farthest reaches of the globe. He noted that Dubai recognised long ago that by building “a sound, need-based, state-of-the-art infrastructure, the region could develop into an essentially unrivalled business hub linking the east with the west.”
The US$33 billion Dubai World Central will essentially be a ‘city-within-a-city’ with the entire project covering 140 sq km and featuring an urban aviation community centred around what will be the world’s largest international airportwith six parallel runways.
Massive residential areas will eventually be home to 900,000 people, supporting six specialised clustered zones: Dubai World Central International Airport (JXB), Dubai Logistics City (DLC), DWC Commercial City, DWC Residential City, DWC AviationCity and DWC Golf City.
The whole project will be linked by an internal light rail system with connections to Dubai’s main mass rapid transit system now under construction. When the new airport is completed it will have a capacity of 120 million passengers and more than 12 million tonnes of cargo annually. But of particular interest to the delegates is the integrated nature of the project which will create the world’s largest duty freecustoms zone.
“What makes this project unique is that the Jebel Ali Port and Free Zone will be linked to the new airport and Logistics City as one multi-modal, integrated platform. Imagine, an airport and seaport 10 km apart and still linked by a continuous customs environment,’’ Proffitt enthused. Dubai Logistics City (DLC) will cover nearly 25 sq km and will house forwarders, 3PLs, manufacturers, etc. Nearly 9 million sq metres will be set aside for contract logistics with another 2 million sq metres for forwarding.
Licences to operate will be tightly controlled said Proffitt, with only those who are using DLC as a hub for the region and with significant volumes of air freight tosupport the airport eligible.
“Unlike most airports who place importance on passenger volumes first and cargo second, this airport will place equal value on passengers and cargo,” he said. The airport is scheduled to open in the third or fourth quarter of 2008 with one runway, for cargo initially and later passengers.
Dubai International will continue to operate and expand, he said, but eventually all operations will migrate to the new airport, sometime around 2015. More than 135 companies have so far registered to build facilities at the DLC, with Kuehne+Nagel and Panalpina both already started building.