The project, the result of a fast-track tender system won by SinoHydro last year, was scheduled to be complete by May 11, 2010, in time for the FIFA World Cup which kicks off in South Africa on June 11. The contractors were given 23 months to complete the project, starting on June 10, 2008.
It consists of the construction of a new state-of-the-art terminal building and the extension of the existing runway compliant with the International Air Transport Association's (IATA) requirements. A two-phase project, the expansion will see the construction of the new terminal on a separate site between the existing terminal and the aircraft apron and the construction of extensions to the main car park. The second phase will involve the construction of a new building on the site of the existing terminal building and further work on the new separate terminal that will include car parks and aircraft parking aprons.On completion, it is expected that the terminal will be capable of processing up to 900 passengers per hour, while the runway which is to be extended by a kilometer, will be capable of hosting large aircraft such as jumbo jets. The new airport will also have a new parallel asphalt taxiway running for four kilometers and 33 additional hangar plots.
