Dubai awards AED 3bn in contracts to expand its stormwater network

Dubai Municipality has awarded four contracts worth AED 3 billion (about US$817 million) under Phase 3 of the Tasreef stormwater programme. The Dubai Government Media Office announced the awards on 25 October 2026. The work covers about 100 km of main drainage lines, with pipes up to 3 metres in diameter, across nearly 100 sq km of the city.

Where the new lines will run

The 11 areas named are Jumeirah, Umm Suqeim, Al Safa, Al Manara, Al Quoz, Al Barsha, Al Wasl, Za'abeel, Al Bada'a, Al Satwa and Al Marmoom. MEED's report breaks the work down into four packages:

• Jumeirah and Umm Suqeim: about 42 km of main lines, the largest package;
• Al Marmoom: about 23 km;
• Al Wasl Road and nearby districts: about 21 km of main and secondary lines;
• Sheikh Zayed Road to Al Khail Road: about 14 km, serving the Al Quoz industrial areas and Al Barsha 1.

MEED names the contractors as China State Construction Engineering Corporation, Arifco Group, Nael Construction & Contracting and Detech Contracting. The municipality has not said which company holds which project, so the split between them comes from market reports, not an official statement.

An AED 30bn programme, third round of awards

Tasreef is budgeted at AED 30 billion. Its target is a 700% increase in stormwater capacity by 2033 and a 20% cut in the cost of building pumping stations and of operating and maintaining the network. The first contracts were announced in April 2025. Phase 2 followed on 26 February 2026, with five projects worth AED 2.5 billion.

Reports on Phase 3 do not give completion dates for the four packages. The 2033 date applies to the programme as a whole.

Why contractors should watch this

Three of the four packages run through built-up districts, where a 3-metre pipe has to pass under roads and existing utilities. Every trench there also affects the power, water and telecom lines already in the ground, so demand will extend beyond pipe laying to surveying, utility diversion and traffic management.

Sources

• Gulf News, 25 October 2026;
• MEED, 26 October 2026;
• Middle East Construction News, 27 October 2026.

How we coordinate engineering systems before work starts on site is covered in our article on full-cycle engineering.