Background One of seven comprising the United Arab Emirates, Dubai is no longer reliant solely on oil wealth since it has moved aggressively to transform itself into a financial services hub for the Middle East on a par with London, New York, Singapore and Hong Kong. Combined with a secondary thrust into high-profile sporting events, such a national development tack has necessitated large numbers of expatriate workers, in turn fuelling a real estate boom and road congestion. The need for a mass-transit system has also been spotlighted by the superb outcome of tourist marketing based on positioning Dubai as both convenient stopover and a shopping destination in itself. The pressure on vehicles and road infrastructure would likely come from both the resident population, already the largest among all the emirates, and from continued robust growth in tourist numbers. Population in the middle of the decade stood at 1.5 million. On the back of 6.4% annual growth, this reached 2.26 million in 2008 and was projected to reach 5.5 million people by the year 2020. In turn, the influx of tourists was forecast to rise to no less than 15 million as early as 2010. By mid-2005, therefore, Dubai Municipality (also, the “Dubai state”) had finalized plans and resources for a railway system as the better way of easing traffic congestion. Plans were laid to eventually construct four railway lines with a total of 57 stations. Groundwork began in early 2006 for the Red Line, with a planned length of 52.1 kilometres and 29 stations. By August that year, the government also awarded contracts for the Green Line, rather shorter at 17.6 kilometers (later upgraded to 23) and just 18 stations, but covering the highly important Airport and Healthcare City. Targeted completion was 2010 for both lines. It is testimony to the priority given this infrastructure project, however, that the Red Line commenced operation in September 2009 when ten stations had become operational. When complete, the Dubai Metro may be the longest completely automated (because driverless) mass transit system anywhere in the world, certainly a comfortable three kilometres longer than the previous record-holder, the Vancouver Skytrain. This paper analyses the case of the Purchasing function within Serco Gulf, the operator that was to take over the built-up system in the first quarter of 2007. The analysis spans such key planning issues as stakeholder requirements, the cost and revenue outlook, structural and process matters within the department, supply chain management topics and a timeline for supporting the Dubai RTA goal of moving forward inauguration form 2010 to September 9, 2009. Key Planning Issues Stakeholders The primary stakeholders of the Dubai Metro are government, employers both public and private, foreign direct investors, tourists, the commuting public, car owners, and freight service operators. Also involved, though perhaps neither avidly interested nor standing to benefit directly, are media, the rest of the United Arab Emirates, and environmentalists. (This last group is addressed in section II-B below.) Government For government, the Dubai Metro project is a showcase of economic development becaus