The decision of the Ministry of Transport and Communications (MTC) to order the delivery of the expansion of the Jorge Chávez airport in 2025, as originally planned, has meant not only the celebration by the entire union that provide services in the terminal, but rather the reluctant response of Lima Airport Partners (LAP) about what he considers a misunderstanding.
Juan Salmon, general manager of LAP, assured in dialogue with La República that since his office they have not raised any type of addendum to the concession contract. Instead, it points to a process to update its master plan, in which they highlighted Jorge Chávez’s new infrastructure growth projections in the face of market assumptions in times of pandemic and volatility in the airline sector.
“This information has not come in a good way (…) We have been talking with the authorities informally since September 2020. We seek to continue the dialogue with the MTC always aiming to reach January 2025 with an airport with a total capacity for 35 million passengers and a terminal infrastructure equivalent to 250,000 m2 ″, he specified.
In this sense, Salmón emphasizes that the master plan presented before the MTC It covered a horizon until 2041 (year in which the concession of LAP in the AIJCH ends). The idea was that the extensions would be delivered according to the evolution of traffic and demand; to the point that from 2028 to 2035 the new terminal would be progressively expanded until eventually reaching 310,000 m2 and a capacity that ranges between 41 and 45 million passengers.
“This plan is updated every five years. It is a regular practice. In 2025 we will be able to deliver the new terminal (…) Traffic forecasts will be modified in the master plan that we will present in 2026, one year after the opening of the new airport ”, says the manager.
According to the manager, LAP has the obligation to present the relevant information, since this new master plan will verify the demand projections that they have at that time. There the infrastructure will be re-designed.
“That is the way airports are growing,” adds the head of LAP.
Terminal takes flight
In 2019, before the pandemic, the Jorge Chávez airport registered almost 23 million passengers. This brand was precipitated in 2020, when they did not receive more than 7 million.
Today, in the process of reactivation, LAP expects to close the year with 10 million travelers, almost the same level as a decade ago, in 2010 (43% less than at the prepandemic level). It also estimates that the entire industry will recover in 2024.
Data
Movement. Last month alone, the Jorge Chávez International Airport handled 1,281,453 passengers between departures and arrivals of commercial flights.
Traffic. Between January and November, around 77,000 commercial, domestic and international flights were reported, LAP reported.
.
Kingston is an accomplished author and journalist, known for his in-depth and engaging writing on sports. He currently works as a writer at 247 News Agency, where he has established himself as a respected voice in the sports industry.
