Business

Fit for a King: Durban to Get a New Airport

By Lucy Siebert, Airport World

posted: 08 January 2008 11:52 am ET

: Passenger traffic at the existing Durban International Airport on a small site near the coast south of the city is growing fast and the facility cannot sustain expected long-term growth. However, construction has just begun on a green-field site at La Mercy, north of Durban, which will offer a much longer runway capable of handling the largest aircraft and plenty of room for traffic growth. Credit: ACSA
: South African Airways (SAA) operates its main international hub at Johannesburg's OR Tambo International Airport, and at present almost all of Durban International Airport's traffic is domestic. This is partly because its runway isn't long enough to allow very-long-haul flights to take off. However, the city's new King Shaka International Airport -- which will be the main gateway to KwaZulu-Natal province and is expected to be one of its main economic drivers -- will easily be able to handle the largest aircraft, and airport operator ACSA is already marketing the airport to airlines for long-haul international flights. Credit: Airbus S.A.S.

Named after South Africa’s legendary Zulu warrior king, the $973 million (€660 million) King Shaka International Airport 19 miles (30 kilometers) north of Durban is finally under construction.

Part of the city’s new Dube TradePort project, the first green-field airport to be built in South Africa for 20 years is expected to spearhead KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) province’s ambitions of becoming one of Africa’s biggest economic and industrial powerhouses, reports Airport World.

“The Dube TradePort is closely linked to the provincial government structure and it has been put in place to create momentum in KZN,” said Hamish Erskine, project executive for the Dube TradePort.

“The provincial government recognises the economic development spinoffs that come with airports and Durban is in a unique position to take advantage of air freight opportunities for local exporters.”

First mooted over 30 years ago, construction got underway in August 2007 after overcoming a number of issues -- including the losing bidding consortium legally disputing the deal and environmental concerns about Africa’s largest flock of barn swallows, which roosts near the site.

However, now Ilembe, a consortium led by South African construction giants Group Five and WBHO, has begun construction on the airport, which will be able to handle 7.5 million passengers annually when it opens in 2010.

The Dube TradePort project includes the new airport, trade zone, business support zone and a special ‘agri zone’ that will support emerging agricultural producers and create jobs for the millions of unemployed living in the hills of KZN.

According to estimates, more than 3,400 people will be employed during construction and about 3,000 once the facility is operational.

Significant economic and job growth

“In terms of creating new jobs, we need to take into account the structural shift in the economy that will take place. There will be a major impact on the logistics industry, particularly through the linkages to the ports. We expect there will be significant growth and job creation and that is why the provincial government is supporting this project so strongly,” said Erskine.

While the existing Durban International Airport has been doing a sterling job over the last few years, it is simply not able to keep up with growth due to land constraints.

“Durban International Airport has been growing at around 10 percent since the year 2000, when we only had two million passengers. We are now rapidly heading for the 5 million mark and we need an airport that will allow this growth to continue, and even to accelerate it,” said the gateway’s general manager, Deon Cloete.

A380-capable

The new airport will boast a 12,140-foot (3,700-meter) long runway -- a big improvement on today’s 7,875-foot (2,400-meter) runway -- that will allow it to handle new generation long-haul aircraft, including the A380.

Cloete says Airports Company South Africa (ACSA) is already in negotiations with key local and international airlines about operating scheduled point-to-point services for both freight and leisure passenger services.

“The DTP is focused on getting fresh produce into Europe, Asia and other markets. Good examples of where this is happening are Zambia and Kenya. It is a struggle at the moment not having direct access but once the tradeport opens, it will allow emerging farmers to get into large-scale kinds of production,” said Cloete.

"There will be access to local and international markets and we will provide a facility at the final point plus onsite growing facilities, which will be part of a mentoring program to help farmers get into the growing process," he said.

About 130 hectares of land adjacent to the new airport will be set aside for production facilities (greenhouses), value-added facilities (packhouses, ripening rooms); trading facilities and a nursery, training, research and experimental farming facilities.

Flower-growers and World Cup to benefit

Erskine says one sector in particular that is expected to benefit strongly from opportunities at the tradeport is local flower-growers due to the nature of their time-sensitive, high value production.

Whilst freight and export opportunities are huge for the Dube TradePort, having King Shaka International operational in time for the 2010 World Cup is seen by many as crucial to the smooth running of the tournament and ACSA is adamant the new airport will be ready in time.

According to Cloete, 98 percent of traffic at Durban is currently domestic, with the remaining 2 percent made up by regional service, and this appears unlikely to change any time soon as South African Airways (SAA) will continue to use Johannesburg’s OR Tambo International Airport as its global hub.

However, one flock that remains keen to fly in the vicinity of King Shaka International is the 5 million barn swallows that roost for half the year in the Mt Moreland Reedbed – an area close to the new site.

Barn swallow conservation triumph

After two years of consultation and research, as well as a high profile campaign by Birdlife South Africa, it looks like the swallows and airport should be able to co-exist.

“Since our campaign started, ACSA has really come on board, quickly realising the importance of this site as a reed bed of international significance,” said Neil Smith, conservation manager at BirdLife South Africa.

“In future air traffic controllers at La Mercy Airport (King Shaka International) will be among those watching the birds come in, if necessary informing pilots of the swallow flocks when coming into land so that collisions can be avoided. This has been a fantastic result, and we’re delighted to report on this outcome after a year of negotiations and meetings,” said Smith.

Another environmental issue faced by the airport has been the issue of noise and the possible need to relocate more than 1,000 local families and to sound-proof more than 5,000 homes. Cloete believes that while this is a reality of building a new airport, overall fewer people will be affected by the new airport compared with the current one.

“Durban International is historically a product of bad planning, with over 10,000 families being in its footprint," he said. "By moving the airport, 90 percent less people will be affected, particularly hospitals, schools and other sensitive areas: Relocation is a last resort for us and we are working to best understanding the needs of the local community and how to meet them by planning our footprint carefully.”

What to do with the existing airport site?

The question of what to do with Durban International once it is decommissioned has not yet been answered, but there are a number of options on the table, including transforming it into a deep-water harbor due to its strategic position to the coast and city centre.

“Durban International’s site is very strategic for the city. Ultimately the decision on what to do with it once it is decommissioned will be made on a consultation basis. It is a strategic land holding and we need to understand how it fits into the city and province’s macro Masterplan,” said Cloete.

“All stakeholders will be consulted on how the land will best suit that plan and the surrounding ports, refineries and industrial parks’ needs. A deep-water port is just one of many options," he said.

It finally appears that KwaZulu Natal is ready to transform its economic potential into reality. For its industrial and agricultural producers, and millions of unemployed residents, the new airport and tradeport can only be good news if it is to have a fighting chance at taking a lead in the African economic renaissance.