GMR Group will invest ₹6,300 crore in Hyderabad’s Rajiv Gandhi International Airport to expand the aerodrome’s capacity to 34 million passengers per annum by 2024, as per a senior executive of the company.
Funds for the expansion have been secured, Antoine Crombez, Deputy CEO, GMR Airports Ltd, told news agency PTI, adding most part of the finance is through bonds issuance.
“This is as part of Hyderabad (airport) expansion both domestic side and international side of the airport. We are investing ₹6,300 crore. It is investment to expand capacity to reach 34 million passenger capacity by 2024,” Crombez told PTI on the sidelines of an Investment Conclave organised by the Indo-French Chamber of Commerce & Industry (IFCCI).
Hyderabad airport operator GHIAL would raise $300 million (about ₹2,190 crore) by issuing bonds in overseas market to fund its expansion plans, the GMR group had said in January this year.
The proceeds will be used towards the capital expenditure with respect to the master plan (expansion) of the airport, to increase the capacity to 34 million passengers per annum, the infra major had said.
Passenger traffic at the Hyderabad airport was eight million in FY2020-21, witnessing a de-growth of 63 per cent over previous year due to lockdown and other COVID-19 restrictions. The airport handled over 21.50 million passengers during FY2020 though it is designed to handle 12 million passengers per annum.
Crombez further said the demerger of Airports vertical from GMR Infrastructure Limited is on the way and it is expected to be over by the end of the calendar year.
Source : Live Mint
