The construction of a new terminal will extend the capacity of Malé International Airport from 2.6 million to 5 million annual passengers.
As the fifth airport in the ever-expanding GMR portfolio – and the fourth joint venture alongside MAHB – Malé International Airport is currently the subject of an intricate planning process which will shape the future of the main gateway to the Maldives.
“During the bid stage, GMR had undertaken a fairly comprehensive traffic forecast and the process of revalidating these assumptions is currently underway,” explained Sripathy. “We are now studying various opportunities and needs in the airport and in the region for various stakeholders. We are also doing a competitive analysis of the various services in the airport and the future strategy will incorporate these various elements.”
Although GMR has previously signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Maldives Government to modernise and operate Hanimaadhoo Airport on the Northern Islands of the Maldives, Malé International Airport provides a fresh challenge for the GMR-MAHB partnership.
While the other three joint ventures – Delhi, Hyderabad and Istanbul Sabiha Gökçen airports – are based on high-volume airports with a focus on both business and leisure passenger operations, Malé International Airport has an existing capacity of just 2.6 million and is entirely leisure orientated. According to Sripathy, however, this reputation as a “popular premium tourist destination” will lend itself to “good potential for both passenger growth and non-aeronautical revenue”.
He added: “At this point, the detailing of the potential for the airport is still being evaluated as part of the strategic analysis currently underway.”
New terminal
Sripathy: “During the bid stage GMR had undertaken a fairly comprehensive traffic forecast and the process of revalidating these assumptions is currently underway.”
Having taken full operational control of the airport in November – a full four months ahead of schedule – the GMR-led consortium will now embark on a major modernisation programme of the current terminal and this will be followed in June by the commencement of construction of a brand new terminal.
The capacity of the airport will subsequently be expanded in two phases; initially to 3 million annual passengers and then to 5 million once the new terminal becomes operational.
Sripathy added: “Apart from the new terminal itself, this will also entail development of a fuel farm, and many developments for meeting the ICAO (International Civil Aviation Organization) compliances.”
As the relationship between GMR and MAHB continues to grow stronger, Sripathy also highlighted the “importance” of the partnership, which was initiated back in 2002. “This is our fourth airport as partners and we are growing together,” he said. “MAHB has been a great support for us in providing training and process support and we will bring all of those experiences to Malé to make it a wonderful airport.”
