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Gautam Buddha airport project extends deadline for ground services
The Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal has extended the deadline of bids seeking potential firms to operate ground handling services at the upcoming Gautam Buddha International Airport in BhairahawaSangam Prasain
The Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal has extended the deadline of bids seeking potential firms to operate ground handling services at the upcoming Gautam Buddha International Airport in Bhairahawa, after only two companies responded to its earlier call. The first deadline ended on Wednesday.
“We have extended the deadline by an additional 15 days [until February 14] following the request from potential bidders,” said Pradip Adhikari, director of the national pride project under the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN).
The CAAN has also issued separate bids for a catering service at the airport.
So far, only Nepal Airlines Corporation and India’s Bird Group have applied to provide ground handling services at the airport. According to CAAN officials, they are expecting to receive half a dozen proposals within the extended deadline.
According to the Ground Handling Directives 2015, the CAAN can appoint up to two firms through a competitive bidding process for ground handling services. The potential firms should meet a criteria of having an agreement with at least three international airlines to operate at least 35 flights per week in the airport.
Under the guidelines, airlines can handle the ground services by themselves. The CAAN can appoint the service provider on a trial basis for up to 1 year and the CAAN’s director general has the right to extend the services for up to five years if the firm provides efficient services.
Currently, state-owned Nepal Airlines Corporation has been providing the service to all international airlines except Thai Airways and Indian Airlines at Kathmandu’s Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA).
The corporation has been earning nearly Rs4 billion annually from its ground handling operations and it has become a lifeline for the troubled national carrier. NAC pays 10 percent of its total revenue to CAAN.
The national pride project in Bhairahawa has been envisaged to serve the fast-rising business and industrial hub of Bhairahawa and facilitate international pilgrimage to Lumbini, the birthplace of Lord Buddha.
The airport is expected to come into operation by the end of this year.
The CAAN awarded the Rs6.22-billion upgradation contract to China’s Northwest Civil Aviation Airport Construction Group in November 2013.
The project is also in a final phase to award the bids for the installation of communications, navigation and surveillance (CNS) and air traffic management (ATM) systems.