Delhi International Airport Unveils ₹5,600 Crore Capex Plan for Expansion.

Delhi International Airport Ltd (DIAL) has proposed a ₹5,625 crore capital expenditure plan to the Airports Economic Regulatory Authority of India (AERA) for the five-year period through FY29. The investment is aimed at expanding infrastructure to accommodate rising passenger traffic and maintaining service standards.

DIAL, majority-owned by GMR Airports, anticipates Delhi airport will reach full international capacity utilisation by FY26. "To cater to increasing passenger traffic, DIAL proposes the following expansion capex during the Fourth Control Period," the company stated in a consultation paper.

A significant portion of the budget—₹2,420 crore—will go toward converting Terminal 3’s Pier C for international operations, refurbishing Terminal 2, adding new parking stands for Code E and C aircraft, and constructing Pier E at Terminal 3. However, AERA has moderated the budget for Pier E.

DIAL predicts that domestic capacity will be fully utilised by FY28, necessitating the addition of Pier E. Once completed, the new pier will increase passenger handling capacity by 10 million passengers per annum (MPPA) and allow Piers A, B, and C to be designated for international traffic, while Piers D and E will be used exclusively for domestic operations.

The airport is also expanding aircraft parking facilities in response to airline requests for more night parking. Plans include seven new wide-body stands and 56 narrow-body stands.

Other planned investments include ₹1,568 crore for engineering, ₹261 crore for operations, ₹119 crore for security, and ₹112 crore for IT, along with ₹728.34 crore for carry-forward projects.

To fund the expansion, DIAL intends to rely on a mix of debt and internal accruals. While DIAL has proposed a total target revenue of ₹31,138.27 crore, AERA has assessed and approved a lower revenue target of ₹14,507 crore after review.

According to the consultation paper, passenger traffic at Delhi airport grew by 12.77% in FY24.

ET