Investment in Peru’s airports is expected to exceed $150 million in 2010 due to the construction of a new airport in Pisco and the awarding of the concession contract for the second regional airport package.
Minister of Transportation and Communications, Enrique Cornejo, said the airport in Pisco – located about 180 miles south of Lima – will require an investment of more than $40 million, state news agency Andina reported.
“Together with the Private Investment Promotion Agency (ProInversión), the Ministry of Transportation and Communications is working on the development of a master plan for the Pisco airport,” Cornejo said.
The airport will provide an alternative for airplanes arriving at Lima’s Jorge Chávez International Airport when they are unable to land due to congestion or the weather, Cornejo added.
The Jorge Chávez airport is Peru’s main airport. The firm that runs the airport, Lima Airport Partners, told Andina it received 8.8 million passengers in 2009, up 6 percent from 2008, and is expected to receive 9.05 million in 2010. The airports annual capacity is 10.5 million passengers.
Additional investment in Peru’s airports in 2010 is expected when ProInversión announces the winner of the second regional airport package. The investment package is a 25 year contract to operate and maintain six airports in southern Peru. The airports are located in Andahuaylas, Arequipa, Ayacucho, Juliaca, Puerto Maldonado, and Tacna.
Initial investments will focus on safety measures, like new fire stations and fencing, as well as terminal extensions. ProInversión says the concessions total estimated investment is $237 million, which will be co-financed by the government.
ProInversión short listed eight firms and consortiums last October and was expected to award the contract on Nov. 30. The investment agency postponed awarding the contract until 2010 after its executive director, Cayetana Aljovín, resigned.
“We are working on a new version of the concession contract,” said Cornejo. “We are overcoming some difficulties related to cleaning up land in Juliaca and Andahuaylas, as well as completing the perimeter fence in Puerto Maldonado.”
The concession contract for the first group of airports was rewarded in December 2006 to Aeropuertos del Perú.
