ADFD extends another loan for Maldivian airport development

The Abu Dhabi Fund for Development (ADFD) will provide an additional loan of AED 147 mn to support the development of Velana International Airport in the Maldives, Wam reports. The fund provided an earlier loan of AED 183.5 mn in 2017 for the project’s initial phases.

The project aims to expand the airport to accommodate up to 26 passenger gates and a building dedicated to international flights, which can handle 7.5 mn passengers annually.

Initial plans targeted cargo: ADFD’s initial loan — covering phase one of the project — targeted the expansion of the airport’s cargo loading and storage areas by around 6k sqm, according to ADFD’s website. The project will also see the construction of a cargo terminal with a handling capacity of 120k tonnes of air cargo per annum and a jet fuel station with a capacity of 45k cbm.