Rio de Janeiro – The concessionaire due to take charge of management of the Rio de Janeiro International Airport – Antônio Carlos Jobim/Galeão – as of next August is investing R$ 2 billion (US$ 880,000) before the 2016 Olympics. The concession contract was signed this Wednesday (2nd) by the National Civil Aviation Agency (Anac) and the Rio de Janeiro Airport Consortium, comprised of Odebrecht TransPort, Changi Airport and the state-owned Brazilian Airport infrastructure Company (Infraero).
Up until April 2016, the concessionaire is to invest in building 26 passenger bridges as part of Terminal 2 expansion works, expanding the aircraft apron, and installing 68 new check-in counters, in addition to the 227 existing ones.
“We are building new facilities, new shops and restaurants. The parking area will be modernized and the improvements will be available to the public as of late this year,” said the concessionaire’s chairman Luiz Rocha.
By 2038, when the concession ends, the consortium is expected to invest approximately R$ 5 billion (US$ 2.2 billion) in the airport. Passenger throughput at Galeão is expected to increase from 17 million a year at this time to 60 million.
During the signing ceremony, the Brazilian president Dilma Rousseff said she hopes the concession will bring Galeão up to a level similar to that of the International Changi Airport, in Singapore, which is managed by Changi Airport, and consistently ranks among the best in the world.
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
