Along with its airports, Adani Group intends to build aero cities

15 Jul 2022 , 11:52 AM

In addition to its aeronautical and non-aeronautical (terminal) operations, Adani Group wants to develop real estate projects alongside its airports in the nation, according to a report by ET.

According to their statement, Adani Airports’ portfolio of city-side developments calls for the building of over 70 million square feet on more than 500 acres of land across all of its airports.

These “aero cities” will include a variety of accommodations, convention centres, shopping, entertainment, and healthcare facilities, as well as logistics, business offices, and other related real estate sectors.

According to the report, the corporation is in preliminary discussions with hotel chains like Marriott International, InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG), and Hilton regarding the development of hotels under this strategy.

Mumbai, Jaipur, Ahmedabad, Lucknow, Mangaluru, Guwahati, and Thiruvananthapuram airports are among the portfolio of Adani Airports.

According to the company’s website, it wants to develop “lifestyle hotspots” for clients within and outside of airports. By offering consumers more control over their experiences, it added, “it is creating an increasing trajectory for non-aeronautical revenues for both the airports and its partners, making it the preferred partner in the industry.”

The funding of a $250 million senior secured three-year ECB (external commercial borrowing) facility from a consortium of Standard Chartered Bank and Barclays Bank PLC was closed in May of this year, according to Adani Airport Holdings Ltd (AAHL), a wholly owned subsidiary of Adani Enterprises Ltd.

The facility has the potential to raise an additional $200 million, according to the firm at the time. The company has also stated that the financing structure supports its objective of offering a “transformational” airport infrastructure platform by enabling a scalable capital solution with “flexibility” to access international financial markets. It claimed that it is driving the group’s expansion into infrastructure assets for B2C (business to consumer).

According to its website, AAHL airports control 50% of the top 10 domestic routes, 23% of all air traffic in India, and 30% of air cargo in India. 200 million people use the airports annually.