Concession agreement for Jewar airport signed; work to begin at site by June next year

Zurich Airport International AG, the Swiss company selected for developing the international airport at Jewar, and the special purpose vehicle (SPV) Yamuna International

Zurich Airport International AG, the Swiss company selected for developing the international airport at Jewar, and the special purpose vehicle (SPV) Yamuna International Airport Private Limited on Wednesday signed a concession agreement, paving the way for the work to start at site of the about Rs 30,000 crore project.

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Officials said that the airport is likely to become operational by its original deadline of 2023, unaffected by the Covid-19 pandemic.

The agreement was signed by Christoph Schnellmann, chief executive officer of the Yamuna International Airport Private Limited (YIAPL), and Arun Vir Singh, CEO of Noida International Airport Limited (NIAL), in the presence of SP Goyal, additional chief secretary at UP’s civil aviation department. Greater Noida authority CEO Narendra Bhooshan, Noida authority CEO Ritu Maheshwari, and UP civil aviation department director Surendra Singh were also present at the event that took place at the NIAL’s office in Greater Noida’s Sector Omega 1. Other top officials of Zurich International joined the event online.

“The Noida International Greenfield Airport at Jewar will become operational as per schedule by 2023 as we have already been working on all required procedures, such as geographical survey, topographical survey and soil testing, among other things. We will start work at the project site by middle of 2021 after finalising the required agencies. Once the engineering and designing work gets completed, we will issue tender on our website, and then qualifying agencies in the bidding process will start construction and development work,” said Christoph Schnellmann, chief executive officer of the Yamuna International Airport Private Limited (YIAPL), the SPV formed to develop and operate the ambitious project.

On May 19 this year, the Swiss firm had got requisite security clearance from the ministry of home affairs, paving way for the singing of the concession agreement.

The agreement was supposed to be signed by July 2. However, on June 10, the UP government postponed the agreement signing date to August 17 in view of the Covid-19 pandemic. On August 14, Zurich had been given time till October 15 for signing of the agreement in view of restrictions on international air travel. Finally, Schnellmann from Zurich International, along with one more staff member, travelled for the agreement signing process.

According to the officials, the signing of the concession agreement holds importance as Zurich could not start work at the airport site without it.

“The airport project at Jewar will not only prove to be a catalyst for economic growth and opportunities to Noida region, but also for the entire state. The project will help in economic recovery and attract investment in the state. Besides, it will create jobs,” said Goyal.

According to Schnellmann, the Phase 1 of the airport will start in 2023-27 with one runway initially and will cater to 12 million passengers per annum. “We will soon set up our office along the Yamuna Expressway once the Covid-19 pandemic is over. If all goes as per the plan, the project will be completed by 2023,” said Schnellmann.

The UP government has acquired 1,334 hectares of land from farmers via direct land purchase for the first phase of this project. In total, the UP government will acquire 5,000 hectares of the land for the project.

“We will soon take possession of the land from the Noida International Airport Limited so that the project sees further progress,” said Schnellmann, adding that they are happy and excited to take up this project and looking forward for required support from the government of UP.

After signing the agreement, NIAL chief Arun Vir Singh said, “This is a historic day as we have signed an agreement with Zurich. As the agreement is signed today, we are looking forward to work together to make sure the project is completed as per the scheduled deadline.”