CPEC’s New Gwadar International Airport to be operational by September 2023

Islamabad: China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC)’s US $ 246 million New Gwadar International Airport (NGIA) will be operational by September 2023, the authorities announced.

The greenfield airport is being built at an area of 4,300 acres. An official statement said the passenger terminal building of the project would be completed by June 2023; work related to air traffic control by March 2023, while the overall construction of the airport would be finished before September 2023.

The airport development is a part of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) development, which is a cornerstone of China’s One Belt One Road (OBOR) initiative.

NGIA, the biggest airport in Pakistan will also become the nation’s second airport capable of handling A380 aircraft upon its commissioning. It is expected to stimulate the development in Gwadar peninsula and boost trade between Pakistan and China.

The airport would be operated under open sky policy and developed under the guidance of the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA).

New Gwadar International Airport development timeline New Gwadar International Airport project was initiated as an early harvest high-priority project of the CPEC programme in 2014. It was approved by the Executive Committee of National Economic Council (ECNEC) in January 2015.

The project is being funded through a grant agreement signed between China and Pakistan in May 2017. Soil testing on the project site was started in January 2018 and involved drilling of 300 boreholes in various locations. The groundbreaking ceremony was held in March 2019, with construction scheduled to be completed in 2022.

The NGIA is being managed and operated by Civil Aviation Authority (CAA). It is to be owned by a joint venture between Pakistan, Oman, and China. The airport will handle domestic and international operations.