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South Korea eyes UAE high-speed rail project

18 April 2025

A senior delegation including South Korea’s Land Minister Park Sang-woo arrived in the UAE on 16 April to discuss collaboration on the UAE high-speed rail (HSR) project.

According to media reports, the delegation was scheduled to meet with the UAE’s Minister of Energy and Infrastructure Suhail Mohamed Al-Mazrouei on Friday to discuss bilateral cooperation in the transport and infrastructure sectors, with a focus on the high-speed railway project connecting Abu Dhabi and Dubai.

The delegation visit will conclude on 19 April.

“The ministry has formed a public-private sector team which includes the state-run Korea National Railway, Korea Railroad Corporation, Hyundai Rotem and Posco for the UAE railway project bid,” the media reports added.

The team has been invited to bid for the project after passing the prequalification stage.

In January, MEED exclusively reported that the UAE’s Etihad Rail had tendered a contract to design and build the civil works and station packages for the railway line connecting Abu Dhabi and Dubai.

The proposed HSR programme will be constructed in four phases, gradually adding further connectivity to other areas within the UAE.

The first phase involves the construction of a railway line connecting Abu Dhabi and Dubai, which is expected to be operational by 2030.

The second phase will involve the development of an inner-city railway network with 10 stations within Abu Dhabi city.

The third phase of the railway network involves the construction of a connection between Abu Dhabi and Al-Ain.

The fourth phase involves the development of an inter-emirate connection between Dubai and Sharjah.

The 150-kilometre (km) first phase of the HSR will stretch from the Al-Zahiyah area of Abu Dhabi to Al-Jaddaf in Dubai.

The project’s civil works have been split into two packages – Abu Dhabi and Dubai – comprising four sections. The scope of these sections includes:

  • Phase 1A: Al-Zahiyah to Yas Island (23.5km) 
  • Phase 1B: Yas Island to the border of Abu Dhabi/Dubai (64.2km)
  • Phase 1C: Abu Dhabi/Dubai border to Al-Jaddaf (52.1km)
  • Phase 1D: Abu Dhabi airport delta junction and connection with Abu Dhabi airport station (9.2km)

The rail line will have five stations: Al-Zahiyah (ADT), Saadiyat Island (ADS), Yas Island (YAS), Abu Dhabi airport (AUH) and Al-Jaddaf (DJD).

The ADT, AUH and DJD stations will be underground, while ADS will be elevated and YAS will be at grade.

The overall construction package also includes provisions for the rolling stock, railway systems and two maintenance depots.

The high-speed project will slash journey times between the UAE’s two largest cities and economic centres. The journey time between the YAS and DJD stations will be 30 minutes.

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Yasir Iqbal

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