Whilst we may not always recognise it,
built infrastructure plays a fundamental role in enabling all of us to live our lives.
Here we look at the some of the largest schemes currently under construction worldwide.
At an expected cost of USD $29BN,
Hinckley Point C is the first new nuclear power station to be built in the UK for more than two decades.
Construction of the controversial scheme has now begun, with concrete for the first reactor set to be
poured in 2019 and the main building due for completion by 2025.
In total, the vast project will involve some three million tonnes of concrete and over 230,000 tonnes of steel.
Staying in Europe, the Grand Paris Express is an ambitious USD $39BN extension to the city’s existing
rapid transit system – the Metro.
The scheme, which has been described as “the most ambitious new subway project in the Western world”
aims to better connect Paris’s suburbs to its centre.
In total four new lines, 68 stations and more than 120 miles of track will be constructed,
increasing the Metro’s passenger capacity by around 40%, when it completes in 2030.
Dubai are currently extending Al Maktourm International to create the world’s largest airport.
Once completed, the destination will capable of handling more than 220 million passengers a year.
To put that into context, Atlanta – currently the world’s busiest airport –
handles just over 100 million passengers every 12 months.
The first phase of the scheme – valued at some USD $42BN and due to complete by 2025
– will see the construction of a 7,000,000 square foot new terminal with two 17,000,000
square foot satellite concourses alongside two new 4.5km-long runways.
Phase one alone will give the airport capacity to handle 120 million passengers while a further
terminal with two more satellite concourses and two further runways will bring the airport to its full capacity.
Continuing our journey eastward we arrive in India; a country currently investing USD $90BN in the
world’s second largest infrastructure project.
The Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor is a concentration of numerous infrastructure upgrades
aimed at creating a high-tech industrial zone.
Spread across six states, the 1,483km corridor will see a huge amount of construction over the next 20 years.
Overall, the immense scheme includes a high-speed freight railway, a six-lane expressway,
two ports, six airports and two new power plants.
Along with this new logistical infrastructure, a staggering 24 “smart” cities –
each becoming home to up to 3 million people – are planned along the route.
The project’s ambitious size is matched by its fast-paced timescale,
with the entire new freight railway expected to be completed as early as December 2019.
In a powerful demonstration of the impact that built infrastructure can have,
the Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor has the potential to double the number of Indian citizens in employment,
triple industrial output, and quadruple exports from the region in the next five years.
Topping our list is one of the most ambitious infrastructure schemes ever conceived.
With a projected total cost of almost USD $200BN, China’s “One Belt, One Road” programme
aims to dramatically improve the country’s international connections.
The “Belt” seeks to reopen historic trade routes and consists of six land based corridors,
where infrastructure developments will better connect China to Russia, Europe, Turkey,
India and South East Asia – forming a cohesive economic area in the region.
The “Road” initiative is a maritime version of the historic Silk Road running from the
Chinese Coast through Singapore and across to the Mediterranean.
Officially launched in September 2013, the majority of projects within the master-plan
are still on the drawing board but look set to fundamentally impact global trade in the years ahead
– once again demonstrating the phenomenal power and influence
that built infrastructure has in shaping how we all live our lives.
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