The government will soon restart the process of building "Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib International Airport" which was stopped in 2011.
In this connection, the decision to engage a reputed international consulting firm has been taken to carry out the Detail Feasibility Study (DFS) of the proposed project work.
Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh (CAAB), the regulatory body for all aviation activities in the country, has invited tenders from international consulting firms.
Civil Aviation and Tourism Minister Rashed Khan Menon told the Dhaka Tribune that they want to restart the process of constructing Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib International Airport as soon as possible.
“A tender has been floated. After completing the detail feasibility study, we would start the main construction works,” he said. A feasibility study will be implemented by the Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh (CAAB).
The government intends to construct the new airport with a view to creating an aviation hub in the country, and meeting the demand of future growth in the aviation industry, Menon said.
The existing infrastructure facilities of the main gateway of the country, Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport, are insufficient to meet the future air traffic demand of the country and there are some limitations to expand the airport, he said.
A CAAB official said in order to prepare a short list of consulting firms for the construction work, interested reputed international consulting firms have been invited to provide information in sealed envelopes, indicating that they have experience in similar operations and are qualified to perform the work.
The sale of expression of interest (EOI) form starts at 15:30hrs on July 8 while the closing timeline and date for submission of applications is 12hrs of July 9.
International consulting firms having 15 years of experience in consultancy services are eligible for EOI application.
The selected firm will carry out the feasibility study, site selection, master planning, architectural and engineering designs of the international airport with the capacity to meet the projected growth of the aviation sector and handle code 4F aircraft like B747-8F, B777-300 ER, Airbus 380 etc or larger.
“We have started our works in accordance with government directives,” said Air Commodore Mostafizur Rahman, member (Planning & Operation) of CAAB.
An official of CAAB said primarily the Civil Aviation & Tourism Ministry has selected Char Janajat under Shibchar Upazila in Madaripur district, Keyain and Latobdi under Shirajdikhan Upazila in Munshiganj district and Char Bilashpur under Dohar Upazila of Dhaka district for the airport.
Three runways will be constructed while the length of the proposed airport runway would be 14,500 feet.
The building of airport will require 8,000 acres of land while the estimated timeline for construction will be 10 years with a cost of Tk50,000 crore.
The project will be implemented under the Public-Private Partnership.