THE Dh10.8-billion ($2.9-billion) Midfield Terminal Complex (MTC) at Abu Dhabi International Airport is expected to be commissioned on time by July 2017, according to Abu Dhabi Airports Company (ADAC) chief executive Tony Douglas.

The first buttress for the main structural steel arches of the building was laid last month, with the concrete works expected be completed by mid-2014.

“By the end of 2014, the steel structure would come up with large parts of facade and glazing completed. Mechanical and electrical works would start end of this year and continue through 2014 encompassing water, electricity and power,” Douglas told the Gulf News.

A consortium of Turkey’s TAV Insaat, Athens-based Consolidated Contractors Company and Dubai’s Arabtec is building the terminal. Once ready, it will have the capacity to handle 30 million passengers a year and the airport will become one of the world’s largest in terms of passenger-capacity handling. The midfield terminal building will have parking bays for as many as 65 aircraft.

Meanwhile, the global programme management and construction consultancy Turner and Townsend has been selected by ADAC to deliver cost estimating services, scheduling and risk management for the capital expansion programme of Abu Dhabi International Airport. This involves the construction of the 700,000-sq-m MTC as well as the redevelopment of existing terminal facilities and services to support the airport.