AAI, state arm reach pact on Nagpur airport

After much bickering, the Airports Authority of India (AAI) and the state government-promoted Maharashtra Airport Development Corporation (MADC) have agreed on the shareholding pattern of the company that will develop Nagpur’s proposed international airport.

The airport will be part of Multi Nodal International Cargo Hub at Nagpur (MIHAN) and will come up over 1,364 hectares. The cost of the project is pegged at around Rs 4,500 crore. The initial estimate was around Rs 2,500 crore.

Senior officials of the MADC and AAI are expected to ink the shareholding agreement in a day or two, according to a senior MADC official. The Union Cabinet had given the go-ahead to the AAI for handing over the airport to the special purpose vehicle in February.

The official further said that the AAI would be given 49 per cent stake in the company for bringing existing airport infrastructure and around 400 hectares, while the MADC would get 51 per cent for the additional land it would bring for the project.

As part of the project, the existing runway is planned to be upgraded from 3,200x45 metres to 3,600x45 metres to meet international standards. Besides, there will be a parallel runway of 4000x60 metres. The airport will have parking space for 50 aircraft at the terminal and 50 in the remote, apart from a semi-circular terminal building with an area of 3 million sq ft. Once operational, the airport is expected to attract around 14 million passengers and 0.87 million tonnes cargo annually.

“A private player is expected to carry out these developments and the company which will offer us the maximum stake in another SPV to be created for the execution of the project will bag the contract, according to the official. Replying to a query, the official said it would take another year after the formation of the SPV to prepare the bid document. We hope the economic conditions improve by then,” he added.