Navi Mumbai airport expansion: CIDCO plans 3rd runway to meet future air traffic growth

Navi Mumbai International Airport

Keeping future air traffic growth in mind, the City and Industrial Development Corporation (CIDCO) has invited bids to appoint a consultant to study the feasibility of building a third parallel runway at the Navi Mumbai International Airport (NMIA).

The proposed study will examine both technical and commercial aspects of the project to assess whether the additional runway is viable and required in the long term.

According to CIDCO, the consultancy period has been fixed at six months. The corporation has started the e-tendering process and is inviting online requests for proposals from reputed and eligible single entities as well as joint ventures or consortia. The bidding schedule and detailed tender documents will be available on the CIDCO e-tendering portal from Tuesday.

A CIDCO spokesperson said the selection process will follow the Least Cost Selection (LCS) method to ensure transparency. Under this method, only bidders who qualify in the technical evaluation will be considered for the financial bid stage. The contract will then be awarded to the technically qualified bidder quoting the lowest price.

CIDCO vice-chairman and managing director Vijay Singhal said the decision is linked to the long-term aviation needs of Mumbai and the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR). At present, the region is mainly served by Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA), which has a limited passenger handling capacity of around 50–55 million passengers per annum (MPPA).

With the Navi Mumbai International Airport becoming operational, the region will move to a planned multi-airport system. Together, CSMIA and NMIA are expected to handle around 150 MPPA, with NMIA alone contributing about 90–95 MPPA. Singhal said planning for additional infrastructure such as a third runway is essential to meet future demand and ensure smooth airport operations.

Notably, Mumbai International Airport Private Limited (MIAL) and CIDCO had earlier formed Navi Mumbai International Airport Private Limited (NMIAL), a special purpose vehicle, to manage the development, construction, operation and maintenance of the greenfield airport project. The management of NMIAL was later taken over by Adani Airport Holdings Ltd.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the Navi Mumbai International Airport on October 8. The airport is scheduled to begin commercial operations from December 25, aligning with the Christmas and New Year travel rush.