The Chinchero International Airport (Cusco) will operate fully, at most, two years after the planned delivery period (mid-2025).
The MTC has recognized that The construction of the Chinchero Airport has progress of 12% as of January of this year. Five percentage points advanced in the last six months “unlike the last two years”according to Donald Castillo Gallegos, general director of Civil Aeronautics.
Castillo recalls that in the main works the key problem has been the delay in the design due to differences between the supervisor (AICC Supervision Consortium) and the contractor (Natividad Chinchero Consortium: composed of Hyundai Engineering & Construction (South Korea), Sinohydro Corporation ( China), ICA Constructora (Mexico), and HV Contratistas (Peru)).
Minister Raúl Pérez-Reyes points out that “it has not been paralyzed” but there was “a reduction in workload”, which is why they will opt for an accelerated schedule. However, actors such as KOTRA and the Oversight Consortium have not been clear during their participation in the Congressional Transportation Commission, held this Tuesday.
Carlos Ugaz, executive director of Dohwa Engineering —member of the consortium—warned that Phase 4 (operation of the new Cusco airport) with these delays will take 36 months. It would be ready at the beginning of 2027.
Jae Kyoung Kim, director of the Chinchero Nativity Consortiumpointed out that The rains generated “accumulated losses” and in the absence of “additional economic support” due to the imbalance in its budget – which must be carried out by the State, through the Ministry of Transport and Communications (MTC) – it will be difficult to resume the works in March due to “its critical financing situation”.
For his part, Carlos Fernández Esteban, director of the PMO Chinchero, alleges that the contractor Natividad is failing to comply and “the Peruvian State cannot compensate for its errors” although “there are circumstantial events that are compensable.” The ball is in the MTC’s court. “Even if we accelerate, the contractor would not be in a position to finish the work until March 2026. We can put in a first flight earlier but it would be precarious because they will not work in optimal conditions,” he said.
Werner Salcedo, regional governor of Cusco, demands that those involved in the construction of the Chinchero Airport come clean since the risk of a new stoppage of works is latent.
“There are no concrete answers to say that there is progress. Until now we cannot overcome technical problems also related to water, energy and soil erosion. From Dohwa they say that we are entangled and confused. As we are going, the work will be delayed until 2027,” he commented. .
Source: Larepublica
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