GVK wins bid to develop Navi Mumbai airport

GVK Infrastructure, which operates the Mumbai Chatrapati Shivaji Airport, has won the bid to develop a new airport in nearby Navi Mumbai that will help decongest the Mumbai airport.

GVK outbid GMR Infrastructure Ltd, which operates the Indira Gandhi International Airport in the national capital New Delhi, to develop the Rs16,000 crore ($2.4 billion) Navi Mumbai airport.

GVK's MIAL, which operates the Mumbai airport, has the right of first refusal and can revise its bid if it is 10 per cent below the highest offer.

Four shortlisted bidders included GMR Delhi, GVK-led Mumbai International Airport, Tata Realty and the Hiranandani-Zurich Airport consortium.

The airport project in various phases will cost Rs16,704 crore. It requires 2,268 hectares of land, of which 1,160 hectares will be utilised for aeronautical purposes.

The new airport, first proposed in 1997 and approved by the government in 2007 is expected to be operational in 2019.

The Navi Mumbai airport will be developed through a public-private partnership and the planning authority, the City Industrial Development Corporation (Cidco), will hold 26-per cent stake in the project.

The first phase will have capacity of 10 million passengers annually. The airport will be able to host new-generation aircraft like the A380 and Boeing 747-8.

GVK has developed two of the busiest airports in the country namely, Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport, Mumbai and Kempegowda International Airport, Bengaluru handling 60 mppa and is developing two airports in Indonesia as well.

Besides around 900 lane km operational road projects, GVK's over 600 lane km project is under development.

GVK is a leading Indian conglomerate with diversified interests across various sectors, including energy, resources, airports, transportation, hospitality and life sciences.