Rwanda signs deal for construction of Bugesera International Airport

Rwanda has signed a Concession Agreement with the Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) contractor for the construction and operation of Bugesera International Airport.

Kigali is being positioned to become a centre for business, travel, and shipping in the sub-region and a trransportation hub for the East African region.

James Musoni, Minister of Infrastructure, signed the agreement and Manuel Mota, CEO of Monta-Engilsigned on behalf of the Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) contractor.

The US$700mn Bugesera International Airport project is designed to be executed across 4 phases. Phase I will involve approximately 27 months of construction – at an estimated cost of US$400mn expected to be completed by 2019, at which point the airport will be able to accommodate 1.8 million passengers annually.

Bugesera International Airport project is designed and is being implemented to generate socio-economic development in Bugesera, Kigali, and other parts of the Eastern Province. The airport will sustain the development of the aviation sector by backstopping the growth of RwandAir with new facilities and training opportunities. The project is expected to provide approximately 2,000 jobs for local residents.

On completion, the project is designed to ease the air traffic load which is currently being experienced at Kigali International Airport which is the nearest to Kigali’s CBD, 10 km east.

TPS, a British engineering firm, was in 2009 employed by the Rwandan government to design and carry out a feasibility study to develop a new airport in Nyamata village in Bugesera, 40 km south of Kigali.

Phase II of the airport project will incorporate building a second runway to approximate the capacity of the largest world airports. The airport is also designed to provide leisure, hotels and conference facilities. It is further hoped a free trade zone will be created in the area which will spur economic development.