Eight consortia comprising national and international companies are vying for the multibillion riyal project, which will increase the airport’s capacity to 25 million passengers annually.

The General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA) has organized a meeting of consortia that met the necessary prerequisites allowing them to take part in the international bidding to develop, finance and operate the airport, which will be carried on a long-term partnership between the public and private sectors.

Ala Samman, supervisor of the project, said the meeting was organized to answer queries of companies bidding for the contract before they present their financial and technical offers.

Representatives of the companies also visited the airport site in Madinah.

The companies bidding for the contract included multinationals from the US, Canada, France, Spain, Malaysia, India, Korea and Turkey in addition to Arab companies from the UAE and Lebanon. GACA has appointed the International Finance Corporation of the World Bank as the project’s financial consultant.

Khaled Al-Khaibari, spokesman of the authority, said Prince Muhammad bin Abdulaziz Airport would be the first international airport in the Kingdom to be owned by the private sector. He said the participation of private companies would improve efficiency and help implement projects quickly at a lower cost.

The Madinah airport, established in 1972, is located 15 km away from the city center. The new expansion work is significant in order to accommodate growing numbers of passengers and reduce pressure on King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah, the main gateway for pilgrims.

GACA set out a master plan for the project with the help of a specialized consultant. The project includes new passenger terminals with air bridges, accessories and parking areas for aircraft including large Boeing planes.

Madinah Gov. Prince Abdul Aziz bin Majed recently inspected the airport, where work on a new passenger terminal is in progress as part of an emergency project.

“Prince Muhammad Airport will witness substantial development in the coming days. We have instructed the officials to carry out the project in the best way,” he said.

He added that the new terminal would be able to accommodate more domestic flights.

The first phase of the ongoing expansion project will be completed by 2014. GACA designed the project, taking into consideration the growing number of Haj and Umrah pilgrims visiting the city.