The next phase of the Dubai International Airport expansion will cost Dh5 billion ($1.36 billion) and will include a mega underground cargo terminal as well as a new concourse exclusively for Emirates airline passengers, according to press reports in the UAE.

The third terminal alone will cost Dh2.2 billion, the reports said, quoting officials associated with the project.

They said passenger flow would also be redesigned to eliminate the 300-m walk. The mega cargo terminal will have a capacity of three million tonnes.

The new Emirates-only concourse, costing up to another Dh2.2 billion, will be connected to Terminal One by a tunnel.

Officials said the Emirates concourse would be built alongside the Shaikh Rashid concourse. The two will be separated by the control tower, but will be connected by corridors.

According to the report, the Emirates concourse will have aero-bridges to handle large planes like the Airbus A380.

Work on the new terminal will start next year. It is expected to put Dubai among the world's top 20 airports.

The third concourse should be operational in 2005 and will have 34 loading gates.

It will increase the airport's passenger capacity to 35 million from the current 12 million yearly.