RIYADH: The Saudi Binladin Group has won a SR27.1 billion deal to build a new terminal and infrastructure at Jeddah international airport, the Saudi airports authority announced Sunday. The project, to be completed over 36 months, will expand the capacity of the King Abdul Aziz International Airport to 30 million passengers per year from the current traffic of 17 million passengers, the General Authority on Civil Aviation (GACA) said in a statement. The contract for the deal was signed Saturday by Crown Prince Sultan Bin Abdul Aziz, Deputy Premier, Defense and Aviation Minister and Inspector General, in Agadir, Morocco, the statement said. The cost of the first contract is SR15.125 billion. The contract stipulates the construction of a terminals complex and installation of the latest handling system. There will also be the construction of 96 flyovers, 46 departure gates, four first and business class terminals, yards accommodating 94 planes and a 56-room hotel and transportation center. It will also include the Haramain Train station and a market. The second SR11.9 billion contract includes a 133-meter-high air tower, the highest in the world, a multi-story parking lot with a capacity of 8,200 cars, three power and cooling centers and two information management centers.
