Hyderabad Airport devises three-pronged strategy to boost revenues

GMR Hyderabad International Airport Limited (GHIAL), promoted by the GMR Group, has devised a three-pronged strategy to improve its revenues in the wake of a dip in the real estate market here, sources close to the development said.

"GHIAL's primary focus will be improving passenger traffic. The second focused area will be cargo and the third priority will be developing aerospace business, as accrued losses of the company stand at Rs 250 crore," sources said.

The company, which had announced big plans to develop an aerotropolis around the Rajiv Gandhi International airport here, is now going slow on that front as gloom looms large over the Hyderabad real estate market on account of the ever-changing socio-political scenario in Andhra Pradesh.

"Property development is a long-term thinking now. Lot of over-supply in terms of office space and hotels is there in Hyderabad. There is no point in further supply. It is already crowded," sources said.

The group had earlier announced that they are in discussions with various chains of hospitals to set up a 500-bedded hospital at the airport here as part of their plan to develop the aerotropolis.

"But there is no development in the hospital project. We are in talks with an American Group for the hospital. We feel situation is not conducive now. We are not pushing for that," a senior GMR official said.

Group Chairman G M Rao had said they wanted to develop seven 'ports' which would form the aerotropolis with a view to support revenue and the growing airport traffic in future.

The company is in talks with various airlines to increase the number of tier-II and tier-III destinations from Hyderabad.

Recently, Jet airways had announced that it will make 15 flights a day from Hyderabad to various destinations, making the airport a mini hub.

"We are talking to five major airlines to increase their destinations to smaller cities. Three of them are actively considering our proposals and one of them will be starting a flight to Aurangabad, the nearest airport to Shirdi," sources told PTI.

The airport here handled 7.3 million passengers in 2010, while in 2009 the figure was 6.34 million.

GHAIL has tied up cargo movers like Gati and TCS to ferry cargo from smaller industrial towns in Maharashtra and Karnataka to Hyderabad for further exports.

The company feels that the present cold storage, which are used mostly for handling pharmaceutical products, can accommodate other goods that requires constant temperatures.

Lufthansa, which operates two freighters weekly, will start a third anytime now. "We are trying for truck synchronisation and cargo movement," sources said.

The airport handled 71,106 tonnes of cargo in 2010.

The group, which operates international airports at Hyderabad and Delhi, is also in talks with various aircraft engine makers to set up shop in the SEZ located near the airport here.