Olumide stated that after concession, the concessionaire has the opportunity to build whatever they want on top of what they have seen here in terms of the runway, the master plan, and the business plan. He expressed confidence about the airports revenue generation potentials of the airport boosting its capacity into aerotropolis.
“A lot of people don’t understand what concessioning is. Like when you hear about Lagos (Airpot) being concessioned, Lagos (Airpot) is not being concessioned. The terminal building is being concessioned, not the airport. The runway will always remain with the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN).
“The taxiways will always remain FAAN. But the operations of the terminal building will be concessioned. Same thing here. We are concessioning the infrastructure of the airport. This is slightly different from Lagos in the sense that this is primarily an aerotropolis. And because it is an aerotropolis that makes it more attractive for a concessionaire,” he disclosed.
He contimnued “So, for example, if any of you wanted to take the concession of this airport, you’d say, I’ve seen it is an aerotropolis. You have a permit for an aerotropolis. That means I can choose what type of hotels. I can put Marriott here. I can put Sheraton here. I can do how many rooms, which side of the airport should it be. I want to build a swimming pool. I want to do this. Whatever you want to do, you can do because it’s an aerotropolis. That is what makes it attractive to a concessionaire beyond just the terminal.”
Olumide also explained what makes the airport different from others where passengers board planes. “It is not going to be a primary earner from a passenger perspective. It is going to be a primary earner from cargo and the aerotropolis because you know there is a shortage of housing in Nigeria by and large. You know Lagos is expensive because there is no land. So you build housing estates here, residential complexes, and offices. If you have been to aerotropolis in other parts of the world, you see that DHL, Microsoft have offices there and so on,” he said.
