Will Jewar Airport change the face of Noida, Greater Noida real estate market?

The Jewar international airport will be India’s largest airport with six runways.

The news of Zurich Airport International AG getting the contract for developing the Jewar International Airport has given a new ray of hope to the adjoining real estate markets of Noida, Greater Noida and Yamuna Expressway. The scale and scope of the project is such that it can change the dynamics of the real estate market in the NCR region by shifting the focus of investors to Greater Noida and Noida from the current-favourite Gurgaon.

A sign board is seen at the site for construction of the airport, in Jewar Village, Uttar Pradesh. Government has acquired land from farmers for the upcoming Jewar airport, completing 75 per cent of required acquisition for the first phase of the project. The first phase of the airport would be spread over 1,334 hectare and is expected to be completed by 2023, according to officials. (Biplov Bhuyan/HT PHOTO)

The Jewar international airport will be India’s largest airport with six runways. To put things in perspective, the Indira Gandhi International Airport is currently the country’s largest airport with three runways. The Jewar airport aims to begin operations with two runways in its first phase which it hopes to complete by late 2023. The airport will later expand to six runways by the end of the fourth and last phase of the project that may take nearly 40 years to complete.

The Jewar airport will be spread over 5,000 hectares and is estimated to cost a whopping Rs 29,560 crore. It will be located about 72 km from the Delhi airport, 40 km from Noida, Faridabad and Ghaziabad, about 28 km from Greater Noida, 65 km from Gurugram and 130 km from Agra. According to PwC, the agency that has prepared the techno-economic feasibility report for the project, the Jewar airport is expected to handle over 10 crore passengers by 2050, serving 37 domestic and 31 international destinations.

According to reports, Switzerland-based Zurich Airport International made the highest bid for the Jewar airport contract, offering a revenue share of Rs 400.97 per passenger. It won the bid by a margin of Rs 40 per passenger, outbidding three other groups. Adani Enterprises, which won bids to manage six airports last year, was second at Rs 360. Delhi International Airport Ltd, which is backed by the GMR group that runs the Hyderabad airport and is constructing airports in Goa and abroad, was third at Rs 351. Anchorage Infrastructure Investments Holdings Ltd, part of the Fairfax Group, quoted Rs 205.

Real estate analysts firmly believe that the construction of a mega infrastructure project like Jewar international airport will boost commercial development in the region and revive the property market in nearby areas such as Noida, Greater Noida and Yamuna Expressway.

Not only the airport will help create jobs by reviving commercial activity in the region, it will also create a residential market and may help clear up existing inventory. Also, the construction of the new airport will trigger other infrastructure projects to improve its connectivity with nearby areas, further boosting prospects for existing real estate projects in Noida and Greater Noida region.

The Yamuna Expressway Industrial Development Authority (YEIDA) has already proposed to provide an elevated road, a Rapid Rail Transport System (RRTS) network and a dedicated direct Metro corridor from Indira Gandhi International Airport to Jewar. The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation, in cooperation with the Noida Metro Rail Corporation, is also carrying out an expert study into the feasibility of extending the Metro’s Pink Line until Jewar. The new airport will also reportedly have an Aerocity on the lines of the one at the Indira Gandhi International Airport. At a later stage, the Jewar airport could be connected with the Eastern Peripheral Expressway that joins Haryana’s Palwal with Kundli, bypassing the national capital.

These factors could have a cumulative effect on the Noida and Greater Noida real estate markets. However, experts caution that things will not change overnight and the full impact will be visible only in around 8-10 years once the airport becomes fully operational.

“Until there are visible signs of construction activity on Jewar International Airport, the potential of other real estate developments such as residential, commercial or retail will remain on hold. To be sure, developers who had hoped to cash in on this mega project when it was announced several years ago bought large land parcels in the vicinity. However, they will refrain from launching residential or commercial projects in the immediate future, as the nearby areas including Noida, Greater Noida and Yamuna Expressway still have more than enough existing inventory,” said Santhosh Kumar, vice chairman, ANAROCK Property Consultants, while talking to various media houses.