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INDIA. Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL) has chosen a partnership between Aer Rianta International (ARI) of Ireland and local company IDFS as its selected bidder for the joint venture duty free concession at Indira Gandhi International Airport’s new Terminal 3 which opens in 2010.
The partnership will form a joint venture with DIAL for the 15-year contract. ARI and IDFS will hold 50.1% and DIAL the 49.9% balance.
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The Irish travel retailer, together with its Indian partner, tabled the best financial offer and also came out top in the overall rankings – divided 50/50 between the technical and financial bids.
A Letter of Intent has been signed and final details will be worked out in coming days with the DIAL/retailer joint venture company expected to be formed by late June or early July.
DIAL Chief Commercial Officer Gavin Mckechnie said the company was delighted with the quality of all five bids received – which, as reported, included offers from Flemingo, Setur, Aldeasa, Dufry/Interglobe and ARI/IDFS.
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“We are sure that this is a long-term relationship that will go very, very well“ |
Gavin Mckechnie Chief Commercial Officer Delhi International Airport Limited |
“We had five very good quality bids,” said Mckechnie, who underlined the transparency of the bidding process and criteria. “We distributed the evaluation grid to each of the bidders as they presented their offers to us, so they all knew the weightings we were giving and exactly how we were going to score.”
DIAL also ran each bid through a financial sustainability test, which all the offers passed.
Additionally DIAL appointed external observers to monitor the assessments, and the results were checked by both external and internal auditors. “We have done everything to be as transparent as we can,” Mckechnie emphasised.
Commenting on the winning bid, Mckechnie said: “Some of the content they put together was very creative and very different. We are sure that this is a long-term relationship that will go very, very well.
“Aer Rianta International is a very good company which of course founded duty free retailing [in 1947 -Ed]. IDFS offers good local knowledge and strong local infrastructure, which will help Aer Rianta International. IDFS already runs Indian inflight duty free operations – so they understand the duty free business.”
Both ARI and IDFS will clearly be delighted at heading off strong competition for what is widely viewed as the biggest commercial opportunity in Indian airport history.
Mckechnie commented: “We’re very pleased with the outcome. We wanted the best and most creative offers for Delhi and we believe we have achieved that.”
The commercial tendering process has not finished yet – bids have closed for four parcels of food & beverage concessions, each running for ten years; a 15-year advertising concession will be offered soon; and the airport lounges tender is expected to go to market next week.
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For further reaction from ARI Director General Eamon Foley click here |
Additionally car parking is already out to tender; foreign exchange is set for release in the next two months; and RFPs for a transit hotel, spa and cinema may be issued. Additionally specialist retail bids are due in by 12 June, though that date may be extended. Interest has been particularly high.
ARI Director General Foley told The Moodie Report: “We’re extremely pleased. India is a new market for us but one that we’ve been watching carefully for the past few years.
“We think we have got the timing right and we’re confident we can make this bid work,” he said. “The opportunity is particularly interesting in Delhi because it’s in a new terminal with new facilities and that will make a big difference.
“I recently visited the new terminal that GMR have built in Hyderabad [at Rajiv Gandhi International Airport Ed] and it is up to the level of any international airport that I have visited anywhere in the world – so obviously I am looking forward to seeing the new terminal in Delhi.
“The designs in Delhi have been done to maximise commercial revenues, which means from a travel retail point of view we have attractive and adequate space, which is very exciting.”
ABOUT DIAL: DIAL is a Public Private Partnership Initiative for the modernization and restructuring of Indira Gandhi International Airport in New Delhi, India. The DIAL consortium comprises GMR Group, Airports Authority of India, Fraport, Eraman Malaysia and India Development Fund.
Click on the arrow in the video screen to view a detailed walkthrough of Delhi T3 |
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An artist’s impression of how the new Terminal 3 will look in 2010 |
MORE STORIES ON THE TERMINAL 3 BID
Five bidders line up for Delhi Terminal 3 joint-venture duty free concession – 15/05/09
Platinum sponsor GMR applauds Trinity Forum principles; event website launched – 30/03/09
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