Rare licence plates bring in about Dh30m at Dubai auction

The number AA90 fetched the highest amount of Dh2.7 million

Dubai's Roads and Transport Authority's 109th auction for rare number plates was held on Sunday. Photo: Roads and Transport Authority

A licence plate auction in Dubai on Sunday fetched about Dh30 million, the emirate's Roads and Transport Authority said.

It was the 109th public auction and was held at the Ritz-Carlton hotel. The number AA90 fetched the highest amount of Dh2.7m.

Plate number M73 was sold for Dh2.36m while W55555 and X800 fetched Dh1.71m and Dh1.02m, respectively.

Plates on offer had two-, three-, four- and five-digit numbers, with the AA, I, J, K, L, M, N, O, P, Q, R, S, T, U, V, W, X and YZ codes.

A plate's value is determined by the emirate, series and number. Letters high up on the alphabet are usually worth more.

Certain letters such as O and W, which is pronounced in Arabic as “wow”, carry a prestige of their own.

The agency sold 100 plates and raised Dh36.5m at its previous auction on December 19, 2021.

Plate Z 31 was sold for Dh2.82m and V10000 for Dh920,000. W500 and O66666 each fetched Dh840,000.

Car number plates garner huge interest among motoring enthusiasts in the UAE. In 2016, Indian businessman Balwinder Sahni paid Dh33 million for plate D5, thought to be the world's most expensive sale.

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