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FAAN to double passenger capacity at MMIA

By on January 24, 2015

The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) has said it would double its passenger capacity at the Lagos and Abuja airports when the new terminals, which are under construction and would be completed early next year, come on stream.

In addition to these new airports, the federal government is building new international terminals in Kano, Port Harcourt and Enugu and all the terminals would be completed by next year.

Before the construction of the new terminal, remodelling work started at the the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) terminal and has currently been expanded by 25 per cent to manage passengers’ traffic at the airport.
General Manager, Corporate Communications at FAAN,  Mr Yakubu Dati made the disclosure to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN)  in Lagos.

Dati said the 25 per cent expansion was from the D and E fingers of the terminal to create more space for in and out bound passengers.

He explained that with the airport increasingly becoming over-stretched by growing passengers’ traffic, there was need to upscale and expand the existing facility with the addition of modern terminal to enable it cope with the new pressure.

He said that the federal government intention was to make the MMIA the desire hub for the West African sub-region.

He noted that the construction work on a new terminal at the MMIA was ongoing as part of efforts to revamp the over 40-year old International airport into a world class facility.

The construction of the terminal is also being replicated at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja; Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport, Kano; Akanu Ibiam International Airport, Enugu and Port Harcourt International Airport, all at a total cost of $500 million.

“Located just a few metres away from the international airport, the new terminal, which has reached 50 per cent construction level, will be linked to the airport. It will not only raise the bar for other upcoming airports in West Africa, but also offer passengers a whole new travel experience.

“The new ultra-modern terminal currently taking shape at the MMIA is clearly in line with the FG’s agenda to transform the aviation sector by making the MMIA a regional hub,” Dati said.

He said that the project is being executed in steady speed by China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC), a Chinese construction firm.
According to him, the new terminal was being financed through a special loan agreement between the FG and the China Exim Bank.

“The new terminal will on delivery offer a new experience to travellers with the latest safety and security installations, conveyor belts and body scanners,’’ he said.
He explained that as a result of the ongoing construction and space constraint within the airport, some services such as the car park have been relocated some distance away from the airport terminal.

He pointed out that these inconveniences should be considered by passengers as sacrifice for a new facility that could be benchmarked with the best in the world.
Originally the Lagos airport was built for about 500,000 passengers annually in 1979 when the airport was commissioned. But today it processes about three million passengers out of over four million passengers that travel out of the country annually.

It is expected that in the next seven years this figure would rise to about 12 million passengers as Nigeria’s economy continues to grow being the biggest economy in Africa.

It is also estimated that new airport would be built in Lagos, just as other infrastructure are expected to be expanded.

 

[ThisDay]