Qatar plans to spend $200 billion in construction projects over nine years, including $140 billion in transportation infrastructure, as it prepares to host the 2022 World Cup, Deloitte said in a report.
The transportation infrastructure projects include a new airport, roads and a metro system to deal with the 400,000 fans expected for the month-long tournament.
Another $20 billion will go to tourism infrastructure as Qatar expects the number of tourists to reach 3.7 million annually by 2022.
The Deloitte report entitled ‘Insight into the Qatar construction market and opportunities for real estate developers’ examines the construction market in Qatar and assesses opportunities for real estate developers in the country.
Having been selected to host the FIFA World Cup in 2022 brought forth the opportunity for Qatar to position itself as a regional sporting hub. Qatar National Vision 2013 and programs such as Q2022 are focusing on leaving a legacy for Qatar in terms of football, infrastructure and economic development.
According to a recent study by Standard Chartered, Qatar’s spending on the 2022 World Cup will only go up to $115 billion between now and 2022. The study says the spending would need to increase during 2013 following lower expenditure than expected in 2012, and added that many of the country’s infrastructure projects should begin later this year.
“The government has already but out to tender a number of roads and sewerage development projects as part of a $20 billion program for the next five year,” Standard Chartered said.
The Deloitte report looks into the government’s strategy of promoting sustainable tourism with the purpose of attracting more tourists and visitors.
“Projects such as the Qatar-Bahrain causeway is an example of this strategy, as it will help drive regional tourist arrivals in Qatar,” said the report.
Plans to construct new roads and a metro system have been put forth in order to support the anticipated influx of football visitors in addition to the airport expansion which is already underway.
In May, Qatar Railways Company awarded QR20 billion riyals of construction contracts to build the 216 kilometer-long Doha Metro linking Doha city center with many of the World Cup stadiums as part of a week of major property and infrastructure announcements.
Experts expects that the World Cup projects, which also include the construction of several sports stadiums that will host the tournament, will create alone about one million job opportunities, adding to employment opportunities to be created in other sectors.
Deloitte experts expect this influx to also bring with it an increased demand for accommodation, with numerous worldwide chain hotels actively considering investments in the country.
Qatar Tourism Authority expects tourist arrivals to grow at a rate of 15.9 per cent compounded annually. This growth also creates opportunities for the development of commercial units, such as various shopping malls around Qatar.
The Deloitte report said Qatar was the third most active GCC construction market in 2012, with $10.4 billion worth of contracts awarded. Transport infrastructure dominated Qatar’s construction sector, with four of the five biggest contracts awarded for major transport projects.
Khaleej Times
14 July
