The Dubai Aviation City Corporation (DACC), which is in charge of the development of the Dubai South airport hub projects, has received a €1bn line of credit from Sace for the purchase of goods and services from Italian companies.

The agreement was signed during Expo Milan 2015, where Sace’s CEO, Alessandro Castellano, also announced the upcoming opening of a Dubai office for the Italian ECA. “Dubai South will involve a variety of sectors in which Made in Italy has extraordinary experience, which we are certain will be employed in the new metropolitan area of Dubai,” he said.

Dubai South (or Dubai World Central) will include the improved Al Maktoum International Airport, as well as residential, golf, commercial and logistics districts and an office park. The 145km2 development will also host Expo Dubai 2020.

The airport itself will be upgraded to welcome 120 million passengers and 12 million tonnes of cargo a year. Meant to become the world’s largest airport, it will also feature a free zone for the logistics, storage and aeronautics industries.

Khalifa Al Zaffin, executive president of the DACC, added: “The development at Dubai South is massive; we intend to deploy future-proof, state-of-the-art technologies with the underlying principle of being eco-friendly and sustainable. This requires use of expertise in various fields from the global players of the industry.

“We have been using Italian technology on a continued basis, as well as materials and goods in our developments including Dubai International Airport. We welcome Italian businesses to contribute to this great development with the support of Sace, who has been interacting with us together with other Italian agencies to bring a fruitful partnership.”

The UAE pavilion of Expo Milan 2015 was also the setting for the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) between Sace and Abu Dhabi Ports. Under the agreement, the two parties will exchange of information and business opportunities to enhance trade between Italy and the UAE.

Mohamed Juma Al Shamisi, CEO of Abu Dhabi Ports, said: “By facilitating initiatives of mutual interest and expanding opportunities for trade and investment, Abu Dhabi Ports, the enabler of Abu Dhabi’s maritime business, is supporting our mission to realise the Emirate’s economic diversification.

Italian companies currently export €5bn worth of goods and services to the UAE every year.