A concession agreement has been signed by the federal state of Uttar Pradesh in India and Zurich Airport (ZRH) operator Flughafen Zürich AG for the construction and operation of a new airport near Delhi.

Flughafen Zürich AG was selected in November 2019 as the preferred bidder for the new Delhi Noida International Airport, which is also known as Jewar International Airport. The concession to build and operate the new airport, 80 km south of India's capital Delhi in the Greater Noida Area, was signed Oct. 7 and extends over a period of 40 years.

Noida International Airport is expected to have a capacity of at least 12 million passengers per year. A single runway will be built in the first phase of construction; around 90% of air traffic in the first few years of the airport is expected to be from domestic flights.

Construction is expected to start in 2021. The investment associated with the first construction phase is expected to be SFR650 million ($708 million).

Flughafen Zürich AG owns 100% of the project. Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, the company remains convinced of the long-term growth opportunities in the Indian aviation market.

Photo credit: Flughafen Zürich AG