The Ahmedabad airport will receive Rs 10,000 crore from billionaire Gautam Adani’s business between 2023 and 2027 as part of a proposal to virtually triple its capacity for passenger handling and transform it into a significant regional hub.
The ports-to-power conglomerate stated this week that it would turn the Ahmedabad airport into a regional hub connecting airports like Bhuj, Kandla, Jamnagar, and Bhavnagar. According to a report in the Business Standard, its annual passenger handling capacity would also expand to 2.8 crore in 2027 from 90 lakh at the moment.
It is significant to note in this context that in November 2020, the Adani Group took over management of the Ahmedabad airport from the Airports Authority of India (AAI).
According to the presentation, Ahmedabad is a “financial capital” with a wide range of tourism prospects. Additionally, it is one of India’s most active industrial hubs. The corporation has stated that the city has seen an 8.59% compound annual growth rate in the number of hotel rooms.
By 2025, the airport’s commercial space will increase from its current 2,000 square metres to 9,000 square metres (sq. mt). mt to increase non-aerial revenue.
To assure a rise in the average transaction value, the Adani Group wants luxury companies to open their stores at the Ahmedabad airport.
The Ahmedabad airport’s projected capital expenditures will also be used to construct an integrated cargo terminal with designated freight bays, air freight stations, a domestic regional centre for e-commerce, and road feeder services.
Additionally, a transshipment hub for both domestic and international freight will be built at the city airport, the daily reported.
Six airports, including those in Lucknow, Jaipur, Mangaluru, Thiruvananthapuram, Ahmedabad, and Guwahati, were privatised by the AAI in 2019 through a competitive bidding process.
The Ahmedabad-based corporation won the licence to operate all six airports for 50 years by engaging in competitive bidding for them.
The largest aircraft maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) company in India, Air Works, will be purchased by the Adani Group’s defence manufacturing division, Adani Defence and Aerospace, for an enterprise value of Rs 400 crore.
