daa selects Bechtel as integrated delivery partner for the Dublin Airport capital program

daa has appointed Bechtel, a global leader in project management, engineering, procurement and construction, as integrated delivery partner for Dublin Airport’s capital investment program. Bechtel was awarded the contract following a public tender process.

Bechtel will provide Dublin Airport with additional capacity and capability over the next five years, as the capital program evolves. Bechtel employees will be seamlessly integrated into Dublin Airport’s existing team, allowing the infrastructure department to be flexible as required during the life of the capital investment program. 

“This is a new approach in the Irish market for a major program of works, and it will bring significant benefits for Dublin Airport,” said Dublin Airport Managing Director Vincent Harrison. “It will deliver a true partnership of people, processes, systems, and best practice and will ensure that we have world-class resources as needed to support our existing highly experienced and skilled in-house teams,” Mr. Harrison added. “Working with Bechtel, we will bring a portfolio management approach to the forthcoming capital programme and this will deliver efficiencies across a range of areas.”



“We’re honoured to be selected as Ireland’s first delivery partner within an integrated team contract and we embrace the opportunity to set the highest of standards for future infrastructure projects to follow," said John Williams, Bechtel’s UK & Ireland managing director. “Our team is excited to bring our experience and innovation to this hugely significant capital investment programme.

Bechtel is a global leader in aviation infrastructure and has managed more than 40 major airport projects in the past decade including expansion programs at Gatwick and London City Airport in the UK, and new airport construction at Muscat International Airport in Oman. The company is also delivery partner for a new airport in Western Sydney, Australia.

In recent months, daa has started the procurement process for a series of long-term projects at Dublin Airport and Bechtel will assist with the delivery of this new capital investment program over the next five years. daa’s decision to move ahead with the procurement processes for the works will allow the company to have construction projects shovel ready for when passenger numbers have recovered from the impact of the global COVID-19 pandemic.

The projects that are within the current capital program were either carried over from Dublin Airport’s last investment program, or are contained within the existing program, which was approved by the aviation regulator in 2019. The current likely timescales for the proposed works will run until the end of this decade.

The scale, scope and timing of the works may change, as several projects within the overall program are subject to planning. daa is also keeping the delivery timescale of its capital program under review, given the negative impact that COVID-19 has had on global air travel and the lack of certainty in relation to the medium-term recovery of passenger numbers.

Essential projects, such as Dublin Airport’s new North Runway and the upgrade to the airport’s hold baggage screening systems have been progressing and there will also be a requirement for significant ongoing works across the airport campus.

Passenger numbers at Dublin Airport, which is Ireland’s main international gateway, fell by 78% to almost 7.4 million last year due to the impact of COVID-19 on travel. In 2019, Dublin Airport welcomed a record 32.9 million passengers in 2019 and had flights to more than 190 destinations in 42 countries operated by almost 50 airlines. Rebuilding Ireland’s connectivity will play a vital role in helping the Irish economy to recover from the economic shock of the pandemic.

About daa
daa owns and manages Dublin and Cork airports in Ireland and has operations/investments in 15 countries overseas including Canada, Cyprus Germany, India, New Zealand, and Saudi Arabia. daa’s travel retail business ARI has operations in 14 countries, and also holds the group’s investments in Düsseldorf Airport and in Hermes Airports, which manages Larnaca and Paphos airports in Cyprus. daa International offers advisory, management and investment services to clients globally. It manages Terminal 5 at King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh and recently won the contract to manage the new airport at the Red Sea Project in Saudi Arabia.