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GV & CU EXTERIOR United Arab Emirates Embassy
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SV Sir Robert Taylor and Sheikh Rashid Bin Said Al Maktoum and officials seated and signing
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CU Papers being countersigned PAN TO officials
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SV Sir Robert and Sheikh rise and shake hands
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Initials BB/0015 GG/PW/BB/0030



Script is copyright Reuters Limited. All rights reserved

Background: Sheikh Rashid Bin Said Al Maktoum the ruler of Dubai, signed a contract on thursday (August 10) with the British engineering company Costain for the construction of a GBP7.5 million (sterling) road tunnel under Dubai Crook, and a further GBP1.9 million extension to the Deira Sea Wall.

The 3,000-foot (1,000-metre) tunnel will link the towns of Dubai and Deira. Sited near the creek mouth it will have twin-lane dual carriageways and a separate pedestrian subway. The entrance on the Dubai side is close to the GBP24 million Port Rashid development recently completed by the company a year ahead of schedule. The Deira entrance will be on land now being reclaimed for the sea wall.

Designed as a reinforced concrete rectangular box, the tunnel will be built in separate open cofferdams. To ensure that interference to traffic will be kept to a minimum during construction, the creek will be widened temporarily on either side.

Last year Sheikh Maktoum awarded a GBP5.1 million contract to Costain to build a sea wall extending 2 1/2 miles along the shore from the mouth of the creek, inside which 320 acres of land are being reclaimed. The new extension of 6,000 feet to the wall will mean an extra 100 acres can be reclaimed, using sand dredged from Dubal Creek.