Riyadh : Saudi Arabia's General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA) has invited leading companies to take part in the international bidding to build the country's first privately-owned airport in Madinah.
"Tenders, which are scheduled to be floated in May, will be received until the end of October this year and the final contract will be awarded to the successful bidder most probably by December 2010," according to a source at GACA.
The new international airport will be ready by 2014.
Ala'a Samman, general manager of business development for domestic airports at GACA, said the airport will be built on the other side of the city's present Prince Mohammad Bin Abdul Aziz Airport.
The old airport will be demolished when the new one is ready, he said.
The Council of Ministers earlier decided to convert the airport into an international airport with the participation of the private sector, in view of the huge growth in passenger traffic, especially during the Haj and Umrah periods.
Implementation
GACA has appointed International Financial Corporation, a subsidiary of the World Bank, as lead adviser to assist in designing and implementing a transaction for private-sector participation in the development, expansion, rehabilitation and operation of the airport.
This will be done as a long term public-private partnership. The new contract will be awarded on a build-operate-transfer basis.
"The actual work on the airport will start one year after the contract is awarded. It will take at least two years to complete," the GACA official said.
The airport will have a capacity of eight million passengers per year. The first phase of the long-term development of the airport will cost between 7 billion (Dh6.8 billion) and 8 billion Saudi riyals.
"The second phase will see the building of new facilities and further expansion," Samman added.
The project agreement will provide private investors the right to develop, rehabilitate, expand, operate and manage the airport and collect a share of the aeronautical and commercial revenues generated.
The investors will also be responsible for the management, construction, operation and financing associated with the project's implementation.
However, certain strategic activities such as air traffic control, customs and immigration will remain the responsibility of the government.
Meanwhile, the expansion work on the existing airport are progressing well.
"Nearly 40 per cent of the expansion has been completed. The first phase of the project will be operational by August when the airport witnesses a huge inflow of Umrah passengers upon the advent of Ramadan," a GACA source said.
