Skip to main content

Mexico City airport to cost US$1 billion

Construction of a new airport on land adjacent to the Mexico City international airport, AICM, is expected to cost US$1.12billio, said transport and communications (SCT) minister Gerardo Ruiz during a presentation of the country's national infrastructure plan 2014-18.
May 1, 2014 Read time: 2 mins
Construction of a new airport on land adjacent to the Mexico City international airport, AICM, is expected to cost US$1.12billion, said transport and communications (SCT) minister Gerardo Ruiz during a presentation of the country's national infrastructure plan 2014-18.

The national infrastructure plan unveiled by the government "does not include (the cost) of new airport installations that are currently being evaluated," said Ruiz.

Mexico's civil aviation authority, DGAC, declared the airport officially saturated in April last year and no additional routes can be opened despite growing passenger demand.

The SCT announced planned in December last year to build a new airport on federal land adjacent to AICM, and has since invited a series of international architecture firms, in partnership with local firms, to design the new airport.

Seven firms, including British architects Zaha Hadid, Norman Foster, Richard Rogers and local architect Teodoro González de León have submitted designs for the project, reported architecture magazine Arch Daily.

In a sign that a new airport might be operated as a concession rather than owned and operated by state airport operator ASA, Ruiz confirmed that the investment would be drawn from public and private resources.

Ruiz also unveiled a series of new projects, including expansion of Lines 4 and 9 of the Mexico City metro systems, construction of mass transit systems for Merida and Torreón and the construction of 1,932 kilometres of new cargo rail lines. Existing rail concessionaires are also expected to build a further 1,560 kilometres of rail lines with their own resources. The SCT also plans to carry out the modernisation of 20 airports across the country, including Cancún, Chetumal, Jalapa, Toluca and Tlaxcala.

Related Content

  • August 29, 2014
    Mexico developing highway projects
    Mexico's transport and communications ministry, SCT, is developing 46 highway projects, worth US$12.3 billion, to be completed by 2018. "We have 28 highways under construction, eight were recently finished, and construction on an additional seven highways will start before the end of the year, said SCT minister Gerardo Ruiz, during the launch of construction of the Cardel-Poza Rica highway. A consortium led by Mota-Engil won a 30-year concession for the 129 kilometre Cardel-Poza Rica highway concessi
  • February 13, 2015
    New Mexico City airport 'the most advanced worldwide'
    The new international airport being built in Mexico City is "probably the most advanced modern airport project worldwide," Dr Bernardo Lisker, international director of The Mitre Corporation, has said. "This is an enormously important project for Mexico, without which the nation's economy would suffer a bottleneck very soon," said Lisker, who will be discussing the technical vision of the airport at BNamericas' Mexico Infrastructure Summit taking place 18–19 February. "Building the new airport in the
  • September 10, 2014
    Work to begin on Mexico City airport
    Work on the new US$12.9 billion Mexico City international airport is scheduled to begin next month, according to Gerardo Ruiz, head of Mexico's transport and communications ministry SCT. Initial works include involve soil improvement, road connectivity and water infrastructure works. Water-related issues on the site could present the greatest challenge to the airport project, as the area is presently used as a buffer zone where excess rainwater from storms is diverted to the land to ease the capital's d
  • March 5, 2014
    Mexico issues rail tender
    Mexico's transport and communications ministry (SCT) has launched a tender for construction of the Mexico City-Toluca passenger rail line. The project will be divided into a series of separate tenders, with the first open to Mexican companies only. The tender launched on 28 February is a public works contract for construction of the first 36km of railway. Subsequent tenders will relate to the acquisition of rolling stock and electromechanical works. The electric trains will travel at speeds of up to 1