I've heard this from a few people and it seems to be a strategic coup for the airline, if it goes ahead. EI wants to expand further east, but what is the biggest threat to this? Emirates. If EI can go into DXB, hoover up all the point to point tourist traffic, it could keep EK out indefinitely. If they're kept out of the way, other destinations, such as HKG, CPT etc. could open.
Of course, there's also the possibility of extra US flights to consider. If EI gets this, as a result of a new Irish/US bilateral (or better still, an EU/US deal, if this can be agreed), it will want to add new US flights. Can it do both; it's probably going to be looking around for new A330s.
Any chance they could find some with Personal TVs in Economy; if they want to expand east, they'll really need to beef up their service product or they'll be eaten alive. EK are quite competitive via the UK, so if they don't at least attempt to emulate EK, there are plenty of other choices out there . . .