UCC-led team wins $4bn Syria airport redevelopment
7 August 2025
Syria's General Authority of Civil Aviation has signed a $4bn memorandum of understanding (MoU) to develop and expand Damascus International airport with a consortium of international firms led by Qatar's UCC Holding.
The agreement designates UCC Holding as the primary developer – through its investment arm UCC Concessions Investment – along with three Turkish partners, Cengiz, Kalyon, TAV and the US-based Assets Investments USA.
The project will be implemented under the build, operate, transfer model and covers the expansion of the Damascus International airport in five phases.
The expansion will ultimately increase the airport's capacity to handle 31 million passengers annually.
The agreement also includes the construction of a 50-kilometre (km) road leading to the airport and $250m in financing to purchase up to 10 Airbus A320 aeroplanes for Syrian Airlines.
The signing ceremony took place at the presidential palace in Damascus in the presence of President Ahmad Al-Sharaa. It was attended by US special envoy for Syria Tom Barrack and representatives from the Qatari embassy in Damascus.
The agreement was signed by Omar Al-Husari, chairman of the General Authority of Civil Aviation; Mohammad Moataz Al-Khayyat, chairman of UCC Holding; Sani Sener, chairman of TAV; Anthony Salter, CEO of Assets Investments USA; Murat Ergonul, board member of Cengiz Insaat; and Mustafa Kocar, CEO of Kalyon Insaat.
READ MORE: Turkiye's Kalyon goes global
The project adds to UCC Holding's portfolio of projects in Qatar and elsewhere. UCC has been involved in airport projects, including Hamad International Airport in Qatar, Rwanda's new international airport and Tripoli airport in Libya.
UCC is also bidding for the contract to develop the first phase of Terminal 6 and the Iconic Terminal at King Salman International airport (KSIA) in Riyadh.
The agreement follows on from the Syrian Ministry of Energy's signing of a $7bn memorandum of understanding (MoU) in May with a team led by UCC Holding to develop 5GW of power generation capacity – doubling the country’s output – by constructing new gas and solar power plants.
The agreement covers the development of four combined-cycle gas turbine (CCGT) power plants in Traifawi, Homs, Zayzoun, Deir-Azzour and Mehardeh in Hama with an installed capacity of 4GW, and a 1GW solar power plant in Wedian Al-Rabee in the southern region of Syria.
The projects will be implemented under build, own, operate (BOO) and build, operate, transfer (BOT) models alongside power purchase agreements. Following final agreements and financial close, completion is expected within three years for the gas plants and two years for the solar plant.
This aviation package also includes:
> Middle East invests in giant airports
> Broader region upgrades its airports
> Global air travel shifts east
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In August, Syria’s General Authority of Civil Aviation signed a $4bn memorandum of understanding (MoU) to develop and expand Damascus International airport with a consortium of international firms led by Qatar’s UCC Holding.
The agreement designates UCC Holding as the primary developer – through its investment arm, UCC Concessions Investment – alongside three Turkish partners: Cengiz, Kalyon and TAV, and US-based Assets Investments USA.
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