26 - 27 May 2027
Dubai, UAE

About Us

DFUI Trenchless Forum

Held on 16 & 17 September on the sidelines of the DFUI Conference

As UAE and the wider MENA region is heavily invested into underground infrastructure development, optimal tunnel construction practices especially trenchless or no dig solutions become central enabler technologies. Below are top areas where trenchless technology is playing a critical role:

Abu Dhabi–Dubai High-Speed Rail (Etihad Rail Phase 1)

Type:Type: Type: High-speed passenger railway (150 km)

Value: Multi-billion USD (part of a larger rail network)

Status: Over halfway complete as of October 2025

In January 2025, Etihad Rail issued a global tender for the design and construction of civil works and stations for the first 150 km phase (Al Zahiyah to Dubai Al-Jaddaf). Bids were due May 2025. This phase includes underground stations (Al Zahiyah, Abu Dhabi Airport, Dubai’s Al-Jaddaf) and elevated track.

Stakeholder: Etihad Rail
Dubai Strategic Sewerage Tunnels (DSST)

Type:Type: Type: Deep underground sewer tunnel network.

US$22 billion total (AED 80 bn concession)

Status: In early procurement (DBFOM PPP). Dubai Municipality has issued RFPs for the first two tunnel packages (J1 and W) in phase 1 (42 km Jebel Ali & 16 km Warsan sections) Bids are due Sep 2025.

Key players: Dubai Municipality (client), with prequalified consortia including Etihad Water & Electricity (UAE), Itochu/Plenary (Japan-Australia), Vision Invest (KSA), etc. Construction will involve deep piling and tunneling works.
Tasreef Stormwater Drainage Project

Value: AED 30 billion (USD 8.2 billion)

Stage: Construction started in early 2025 (first four contracts awarded); full network completion targeted by 2033.

Unified citywide stormwater drainage system to increase capacity by 700%

Deep tunnel construction, ~36 km of large-diameter pipelines (Phase 1), pump stations, infiltration systems

Key Contractors and Stakeholders:
Dubai Municipality (project lead), De Tech Contracting (West Deira works); further contractors to be appointed.
Engineering consultants and tunneling experts (delivery partner tender issued)

Key Areas of Discussion in DFUI Trenchless Forum

  • Advanced microtunneling and horizontal directional drilling (hdd) for urban utility infrastructure
  • Tunnel boring machines (tbms) for metro, stormwater, and sewerage projects
  • Planning and risk management for trenchless projects in complex urban environments
  • Innovative materials and lining systems for deep trenchless tunnels
  • Digital twins and AI for trenchless infrastructure monitoring and asset management
  • Policy, permitting, and procurement frameworks to scale trenchless adoption in the mena region

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Registration

If you are interested to showcase your cutting-edge solutions and technologies for deep foundations and underground constructions, please contact us on partnerships@gmevents.ae or call +971-52 969 7209.

Paid delegate passes can only be secured after the payment is processed via a credit card. Please note that only completing the registration form will not secure a delegate pass for this event. If you do not have access to a credit card and wish to register through other payment methods, or wish for a member of our team to contact you and answer your questions before completing your registration process, please send us an email at partnerships@gmevents.ae with your details and the name of the event and we will contact you as soon as received. 
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Primary Delegate

$25

  • Government Authorities & Academia Government Authorities, Project Owners, Main Contractors, Main Consultant and Academia
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Vendor Delegate

$2799

  • Geotechnical Contractors, Manufacturers of Machinery & Equipment and other Solution Providers
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For workshop registration, kindly email us at snehal@gmevents.ae.

Conference Themes

Sustainability in Geotechnical Engineering
Innovative Soil Improvement and Foundation Solutions
Automation and Digital Twinning in Geotechnics
Remote Sensing & Monitoring in Geotechnical Engineering
Artificial Intelligence in Geotechnics
Case Studies from MENA
Geotechnical Industry 4.0 & Future Trends in Geotechnics
Training, Education, and Collaboration