Construction of the much-awaited Dholera International Airport (DIAC) is likely to begin early next year with the Airports Authority of India (AAI) approving a decision earlier this month to take a 51% stake in the project. AAI will be inducted on the board of DIAC at the latter’s upcoming board meeting in December, Jai Prakash Shivahare, MD, Dholera Industrial City Development, told FE. While AAI will hold 51%, the Gujarat government will hold 33% and the central government, through the Delhi Mumbai Industrial Corridor Development Corporation (DMICDC), will hold a 16% stake in DIAC.
Construction of the first phase of the airport is expected to cost roughly Rs 2,000 crore.
The airport will have a runway of 3,000 metres, a terminal building and other peripheral facilities, Shivahare said, adding that the construction is expected to begin sometime in Q1FY20. The first phase will be built to cater to a capacity of 1.1-5.5 million passengers annually which DIAC expects to reach in 2029. Shivahare said depending on the growth in passenger traffic, DIAC will build a second runway of 4,000 metres in the second phase, designed to cater to 6.5-12.5 million passengers annually, till 2035. The third phase of expansion will accommodate 13.8-25.8 million passengers annually, designed to last till 2044.
AAI is yet to decide on whether construction of the airport will be bid out via a PPP model or for a cash contract.
Shivahare added there is also a plan to build an aircraft maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) facility, given the lack of such facilities in the country. “Obviously, the first requirement is to have a functional airport for passenger movement. We will look at the setting up the MRO shortly thereafter,” Shivahare said.
Source: Financial Express