DIAL may get more from land than expected

New Delhi: The Ltd-led Delhi International Airport Pvt. Ltd (DIAL), which is modernizing the Indira Gandhi International Airport, may raise Rs1,300 crore from the sale of 45 acres to developers, a jump of 42% from the Rs912 crore it had expected from the same parcels in January.
The proceeds from the prime real estate south of Delhi are key to the funding of the project and a greater-than-expected amount from the sale could reduce the burden on passengers. Travellers are now paying Rs1,827 crore directly to fund the project by way of a so-called airport development fee levied on each ticket.
“There is an improvement. We expect, because the market has picked up slightly, 10-20% better realization than what we achieved in the first eight (parcels),” said Sidharth Kapur, chief financial officer (airports), GMR Group, the majority stakeholder in both Delhi and Hyderabad airports.
The 45 acres have been divided into 13 parcels, of which the first eight have fetched Rs865 crore. The remaining five are near finalization and are likely to be sold over the next two months. In January, DIAL sought to levy a development fee on passengers to bridge the funding gap in the at least $2 billion (Rs9,360 crore) project that is scheduled to be completed in March. The assessment had shown a realization of Rs912 crore from the sale to hotels and commercial developers.
29/11/09 Tarun Shukla/Live Mint

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Categories: Airports Nov 2009