Incheon Airport operator secures KRW 6.9 Trillion New Tashkent Airport Project contract

The operator of South Korea’s Incheon International Airport has secured a contract for what will be its largest overseas project: a new international gateway for Uzbekistan’s capital city Tashkent.

On August 4, the Incheon International Airport Corporation (IIAC) announced that it won and signed the contract for the KRW 6.9 trillion (~USD $4.83 billion) New Tashkent International Airport Development and Operation Project (New Tashkent Airport Project). The project will proceed as a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) under the Build-Transfer-Operate (BTO) method with leading proponents including Saudi Arabian infrastructure investment company Vision Invest and the government of Uzbekistan is the main client. IIAC will hold a 7.5% stake under the 35 year project starting in 2027. The first four years will be for the construction, and the remaining 31 years will be for the operations of the airport.

Under the BTO model, the private sector handles construction, then transfers ownership to the government. The private sector keeps the responsibility of the operations.

Joining IIAC, Vision Invest, and the Uzbekistan government are other Consortium members Japan-based Sojitz and the Korea Overseas Infrastructure & Urban Development Corporation. With the Korea Overseas Infrastructure & Urban Development Corporation, the combined stake by the Korea-based firms is 15%.

During the construction, IIAC will participate in building the passenger terminals and parking terminals. It will then take responsibility for overall airport operations including management and the maintenance of the facilities and technical support.

The Uzbistan Airports Corporation is responsible for the development and operation of aircraft movement areas, including runways and aprons.

Located 35 kilometers south of Tashkent’s current airport in the Urtachirck and Kiichirk districts of Tashkent Oblast, the New Tashkent Airport is scheduled to be opened and replace Tashkent’s current airport in 2031. Once completed, the new airport will have the capacity to accommodate 20 million passengers and 129,000 tonnes of cargo per year.

In 2024, Uzbekistan’s aviation passenger traffic reached 13.5 million representing an annual average growth rate of 44.6% (2021-2024). Tashkent Airport accounts for 64.6% of the country’s passenger traffic serving around 8.72 million passengers.

The New Tashkent Airport Project is IIAC’s second project in Uzbekistan. The company secured the contract for the development and operation of the Urgench Airport in May.