Bids open as a dozen firms vie for airport contract

Williams Industries has teamed up with an international global player in operating airports to bid to run the Grantley Adams International Airport (GAIA).

The company, owned by industrialist “Bizzy” Williams in consortium with VINCI Airports, is among 12 other bidders vying for the operations, financing, development and maintenance of the state-owned airport.

VINCI Airports operates 45 airports in 12 countries and has more than 20,000 employees worldwide, according to information on its website

The dozen other players are Companhia de Participações em Concessões S.A., Corporación Aeroportuaria del Este, S.A.S.; Corporación Americas Airports S.A; Daa International Limited, EGIS Projects S.A. in consortium with Bouygues Bâtiment International, Jamaica Producers Group Limited, and Eppley Limited; Ferrovial Airports International SE;Groupe ADP,Grupo Aeroportuario del Centro Norte, S.A.B. de C.V. (GACN),Grupo Aeroportuario del Pacífico, Incheon International Airport Corporation, Schiphol Nederland B.V., Vantage Airport Group Ltd.

The prequalified bidders are to receive a Request for Proposals (RFP) and bidding documents for the GAIA Public-Private Partnership (PPP) project when the bid process is launched later this year.

GAIA Chairman Vic Fernandes said he was pleased with the interest displayed by potential operators and said it confirms that the Grantley Adams International Airport is an extremely attractive investment opportunity.

The invitation for prequalification was publicly launched on February 3 in the local and international press as the first phase of the international competitive bidding process for the further development of GAIA through a PPP, and followed a rigorous due diligence process completed last year

Some 14 applications were received in total.

These prequalification applications were evaluated by an 11-member Bid Commission comprising three sub-committees: Technical, Legal and Financial.

The International Finance Corporation (IFC), a private sector arm of the World Bank, which is advising GAIA Inc. and the Barbados Government on the structuring and implementation of the PPP, shadowed the evaluation of the applications for prequalification and supported and advised GAIA Inc. and the Bid Commission during this process.

“Well-structured public-private partnerships can be an important tool for governments to address development challenges by sharing risks between the public and private sectors,” said Judith Green, IFC Regional Manager for the Caribbean.

“Through its advisory role, IFC will help the Government of Barbados leverage private sector capital and expertise in the redevelopment of the Grantley Adams International Airport, while retaining ownership. We are excited that this PPP has attracted 13 strong local, regional and international bidders in the midst of COVID-19, which demonstrates the appetite from investors to do business in the Caribbean.”

Fernandes commended the IFC, the management team of GAIA Inc. and the Bid Commission for “the most thorough, transparent and comprehensive process of identifying and evaluating the potential bidders”.

Under the PPP, The Government will retain ownership of the infrastructure, while the private partner would be granted a concession or lease for a number of years to expand, operate and maintain the facility until the end of the contractual period expected to last up to 30 years.

Before the launch of the bid process in the last quarter of this year, GAIA Inc. will engage the prequalified bidders and other stakeholders, to adapt the proposed structure of the PPP to the new environment, in light of changes to the airport and aviation industry brought about by the coronavirus pandemic.

The final decision by GAIA Inc. and Government on which operator will be awarded the contract is to be based on the outcome of the evaluation of bids received based on the pre-established criteria.

The tender is slated to be awarded in the first half of next year with the signing of the concession agreement to take place within a month thereafter. (BT/BGIS)