The group CEO of Qatar Airways has said the superstructure works for Rwanda's new Bugesera International airport, located 25km south of Kigali International airport, will be awarded in the next month or two.

Badr Al-Meer provided the update on the project during the 2024 Qatar Economic Forum held on 14-16 May in Doha.

The Qatari flag carrier signed an investment partnership agreement to build, own and operate the airport with the government of Rwanda in December 2019, taking a 60% stake in Bugesera Airport Company.

During a discussion at the forum titled Connecting the Middle East and Africa with Yvonne Makolo, CEO of RwandAir, Al-Meer said contractors were already on the ground finalising the infrastructure packages for the new airport and the team is aiming to award the works by June or July.

"We [are having] very close discussions with the contractors who will carry out the superstructure packages and we're aiming to award the construction package by next month, maximum the month after," he said.

Al-Meer added that the project partners would meet later in May to finalise the construction tender. The contractor names were not revealed and Qatar Airways has not responded to ConstructAfrica’s queries on the matter.

During the conversation, Makolo said work is about to be finalised on the airport's horizontal works and the focus will now move to the vertical works. “We're looking at 2027/2028 in terms of the airport being operational,” she added.

Portugal's Mota Engil is understood to be carrying out the horizontal works for the airport at a cost of €250.5 million (US$272 million).

According to Africa Intelligence, two bidders are frontrunners to win the vertical works package: a team of Mota-Engil and Qatar's UrbaCon Trading & Contracting (UCC); and Greece's Consolidated Contractors Company.

Bugesera International airport is being built in two phases across an area of 2,500 hectares. It will have the capacity to handle 8.2 million passengers and 150,000 tonnes of cargo annually once phase one is finished. Following the completion of phase two, the airport will be able to handle 14 million passengers and 300,000 tonnes of cargo a year.

According to Rwanda's The New Times publication, the total project cost is estimated at US$2 billion.

The investment in Bugesera airport is part of Qatar Airways’ plans to set up a hub in east and central Africa. The airline already has a network in West Africa, flying to four cities in Nigeria, and has partnered with Morocco’s Royal Air Maroc to cater to the North African market.

Qatar Airways is currently at the final stage of an equity investment in a Southern African airline, which will complement RwandAir’s operations. The airline’s name has yet to be revealed.