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New greenfield airports and existing cost-effective airports will see the light of privatization in the coming time, Airports Authority of India (AAI) Chairman Arvind Singh said on Thursday.
“Going ahead, I see more and more participation where new greenfield airports and existing profitable airports will be privatised because that is the stated policy and we expect more participation from both domestic and international companies in this privatisation process.”
Arvind Singh , AAI Chairman
Singh said that the country had an established and robust privatization program in place.
“It started almost 14 years ago when Delhi and Mumbai airports were privatised. We saw more private airports coming up in Hyderabad and Bangalore. We have a very established and robust policy,” Singh said.
So far as revenues are concerned, the revenues obtained from Delhi and Mumbai in the very first year of privatization has grown exponentially, the Chairman expressed. He further added, “Today, AAI gets almost Rs 3,000 crores annually from Delhi and Mumbai airports.”
Since airport authorities are debt-free companies, Singh believes this is the reason why “significant investment can be made in the sector for adequate infrastructure expansion without raising any money either from the budget or loans.”
While looking forward to Wings India 2020, which is scheduled to be held in Telangana’s Hyderabad in March this year, the AAI chairman hoped that the event will bring together companies, governments and foreign ministry officials from across the globe.
Through key interactions and productive discussions, the challenges of the future with respect to growth and infrastructure can be handled in a better way. The platform will also showcase the best companies, airport operators, manufacturers and airlines.
