Global air cargo terminal in Visakhapatnam gets only one bidder

Oct 15, 2016: The Vizag Airport is reportedly having a tough time finding bidders for an operator to handle the international air cargo operations at the airport.

According to media reports, even after inviting bids for the second time this year, only one company has shown interest.

This has posed a big question mark over the international cargo handling. International air cargo operations at the airport would take off by December this year, if Vizag Airport officials get clearance for the one bid from Airports Authority of India (AAI), Chennai.

The undue delay in starting of international air cargo operations at Vizag Airport has come in for criticism from politicians and industrialists. Despite the reduction in license fee (from Rs 6 lakh to Rs 3.5 lakh an year), only one developer has submitted the technical bids to handle the international cargo from Vizag Airport.

Some operators have apparently been discouraging the developers to handle the international air cargo at the airport citing that the international cargo operations at airport not profitable. In the beginning of 2016, one firm which had bagged the tender, failed to start operations and later withdrew on the ground that international cargo operation was not feasible at Vizag Airport.