Plans to introduce a new 50-strong fleet of revamped metro trains in Dubai remain right on track - after the new-look model went through a successful test run.
The director-general of Dubai's Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) was on hand to see the train put through its paces on a 500 metre test track in Poland.
The new line is part of a project to bolster the roster of metro trains in time for Expo 2020 in Dubai.
The first of the new trains will arrive in Dubai in November, with all of the carriages being transported to the city by the end of October 2019.
Fifteen of the trains will serve the Expo 2020 rail route, with the remaining 35 to be deployed as part of the existing metro line.
The final date for when the new metro carriages will roll onto the tracks and welcome passengers in the emirate is still to be announced.
During the test run in Poland, trains rolled over the test track at varying speeds, and multiple tests were carried out on the safety systems, electric propulsion, braking system, emergency stops and the train doors operating systems.
Mattar Al Tayer, director-general and chairman of the board of director announced that the first train will be brought over in a matter of weeks after attending the testing.
The new trains will include a last carriage dedicated to women and children and will have a section of the first carriage set aside for Gold class customers.
The new intake will swell the number of trains on track to nearly 700 when they become operational.
The exterior design of the trains will remain unchanged to those currently used.
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Other additions will include an illuminated dynamic map for the metro route and stations, using an LED power-saving lighting system, and modifications to the luggage compartment to make it usable by standing commuters.
The new carriages will be designed to make access as easy as possible for people with disabled commuters.
Al Tayer described the technical test run of trains as a milestone in the construction of the Route 2020 Project, which involves the extension of the Dubai Metro Red Line from Nakheel Harbour and Tower Station to the site of Expo 2020.
"Tests will continue until the shipment of the trains to to ensure the reliability of results," said Mr Al Tayer.
"Tests will cover a wide range of issues such as the air-conditioning system, electrical feed and braking system, coupling of coaches, disconnecting of power supply, rail monitoring and control system, and operational tests of the train under normal and emergency conditions.”
Dubai Metro marked it ninth anniversary earlier this month.
More than 100 million journeys were taken on the transport system last year alone.
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Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
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John Zubrzycki, Hurst Publishers
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Recharge as needed, says Mat Dryden: “We try to make it a rule that every two to three months, even if it’s for four days, we get away, get some time together, recharge, refresh.” The couple take an hour a day to check into their businesses and that’s it.
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Pull your weight, says Thuymi Do: “To do what we do, there definitely can be no lazy member of the team.”
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Education: Mr Al Bahar was born in 1979 and graduated in 2008 from the Judicial Institute. He took after his father, who was one of the first Emirati lawyers
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What vitamins do we know are beneficial for living in the UAE
Vitamin D: Highly relevant in the UAE due to limited sun exposure; supports bone health, immunity and mood.
Vitamin B12: Important for nerve health and energy production, especially for vegetarians, vegans and individuals with absorption issues.
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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
MATCH INFO
CAF Champions League semi-finals first-leg fixtures
Tuesday:
Primeiro Agosto (ANG) v Esperance (TUN) (8pm UAE)
Al Ahly (EGY) v Entente Setif (ALG) (11PM)
Second legs:
October 23
Stree
Producer: Maddock Films, Jio Movies
Director: Amar Kaushik
Cast: Rajkummar Rao, Shraddha Kapoor, Pankaj Tripathi, Aparshakti Khurana, Abhishek Banerjee
Rating: 3.5
