Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA), the sole international airport will be closed for 8 hours daily from Magh, 2075 (January 2019) for rehabilitation of the runway. Pratap Babu Tiwari, newly appointed spokesperson of TIA stated that the TIA authority is discussing in the subject of the rehabilitation of the runway.
Mr. Rabindra Adhikari, Minister of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation said that the runway rehabilitation work will be completed within four months and TIA will be in operation for 24 hours from Jestha, 2076. The runway built in the 1980s has not yet been expanded and maintained.
According to the source, the tender document files prepared for financial competition between technically viable companies have been halted on the Board authority. The runway at several spots have been cracked and it also gets obstructed by water in several occasions making aircraft difficult to operate. Airlines have to hold in the sky due to repetitive runway cracks.
In 2014, the Spanish company AESA designated the design for the airport runway improvement. However, after 2015 earthquake, the airport officials appointed Korean Yosin Engineering Company for ‘Design Review’.
The office had a global tender for runway reform, based on the consultant’s report. Although 11 companies showed the desire to work, the consultant and the tender assessment committee had chosen only four companies: China Railway Number Five Engineering Group Company Limited, China National Agro Technology International Engineering Corporation, China Harbor Engineering Company Limited and Beijing Changh Municipal Engineering Group Company to be technically capable.
The companies were only selected after investigating financial capability and efficiency. But until now, the investment competition between those companies has not been able to compete. The airport office has been spending a monthly amount of Rs. 10 lakh only from the consultant who has assisted from the ‘Report Review’ to the company’s selection.
With the company’s selection, the engineering head office of the airport sent the tender document to the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal for demanding approval to make financial competition with four companies.
The counselor’s report and study estimates 3000 meters of runway and 2000 meters of the taxiway renovation to cost about Rs.3 billion.
