The archipelago of Mayotte, a French overseas department located in the northern Mozambique Channel in the Indian Ocean, will unveil its new passenger terminal at Dzaoudzi Pamandzi International Airport in February 2014, with works expected to be complete by the end of the year. Originally due to come online this year, delays have been experienced owing to what the Mahoran press have described as "logistical difficulties."
The EUR45million project, financed by the Banque de la Réunion (BR) and BPCE International et Outremer (BPCE IOM), is being under taken by Canadian construction outfit, SNC-Lavalin, who were awarded a public service operating concession contract (Délégation de Service Public) for the airport by Paris in 2011, in addition to the construction deal. SNC-Lavalin's 15-year operating concession consists primarily of management and maintenance of the airport in addition to commercial development based on regular service to and from mainland France (Paris) and inter island service in this region of the Indian Ocean.The new air terminal building, designed by REC Architecture, has capacity for 1.5million pax/annum and includes a restaurant area and a large commercial area and will see the current 1'250 m² air terminal building converted into administrative offices once complete.
A secondary runway, to compliment the current 1'929m-long 16/34 is also planned to allow for the operation of larger aircraft to the island, whose traffic is expected to grow to 625'000 pax/annum in 2025 from 310'000 in 2010. That part of the project, while critical, has been put on hold as Mahoran bureaucrats pour over the two proposed scenarios for the runway which currently include: either extending 16/34 to 2'300m, costing EUR230million, or the construction of a secondary 2'600m-long runway for EUR210million.
Renderings for the new terminal at Dzaoudzi
Pamandzi International Airport, Mayotte
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| New Terminal at Dzaoudzi Pamandzi International Airport, Mayotte (REC Architecture) |
Thereafter, in 2015 and 2016, a new ATC tower and MRO hangar are expected to also be built.
Dzaoudzi will also form the hub for Air Austral's (UU) planned new regional carrier, EWA, set to begin flights to Madagascar, Tanzania, Mozambique and the Comoros later this year.