Providenciales, Turks and Caicos Islands — The redevelopment of the Providenciales International Airport (also known as the Howard Hamilton International Airport) has been canceled. This decision was made by the Government on 29 December and announced publicly yesterday.
Little information has been provided as to the reason for the termination of this project, but continued slippage of construction start dates indicated that there were persistent issues with the project. Notably, when the project was initially announced in 2022, Premier Washington Misick stated construction would start in February 2023. Additional commencement dates in 2024 and 2025 were also missed.
Background
In 2002, the Government sold a majority stake in the Providenciales International Airport to a local company, which the Government decided to re-purchase in 2010.
During this time, overnight visitor arrivals increased from 154,961 in 2002 to 288,702 in 2010, and there were no major upgrades or improvements made. An expansion project started in 2011 and completed in 2014 expanded the runway and taxiways, and re-developed parts of the terminal. This expansion 11 years ago was the last major upgrade to the airport, although there have been smaller projects, such as expanding the departures hall.
Between 2015 and 2024, overnight arrivals rose from 357,722 to 734,308. This doubling in traffic has resulted in overcrowding and cramped facilities at the airport, and is a common source of complaints from visitors.
The Public-Private Partnership
The Turks and Caicos Government originally envisioned the redevelopment as a public-private partnership (PPP) however, the Government now plans for an ‘alternative delivery method’ (without providing additional details).
The Government had hired ALG Global, a transport and logistics consultancy, to provide an initial due diligence technical report, which was released in 2022. A further business case report outlining the PPP was released in May 2023.
In 2024, the Government shortlisted 5 applicants, who were invited to submit proposals for the design, build, and operation of the airport via a public-private partnership. The 5 shortlisted candidates were:
- Manchester Airports Holdings Limited, Winward Management Limited, and BHM Construction International (UK) Limited
- Ferrovial Airports International SE, and Projetech Construction Management and Services Ltd (a local TCI company)
- Aecon International Construction Services Inc., Olympic Construction Ltd., and VINCI Airports SAS
- Regis Holdings S.A., HAB Limited (a local TCI company), DAA International Limited (Dublin Airports), and Bouygues Batiment International
- Grupo Aeroportuario del Pacifico S.A.B. de C.V., and John Redmond Associates Ltd. (a local TCI company)
These companies had submitted their final bids in December 2024.
The Future: Remediation and Interim Works Continue
The Turks and Caicos Islands Airports Authority (TCIAA), the statutory body responsible for managing the country’s publicly-owned airports, stated that this doesn’t mean there will be no redevelopment. Rather, some interim capacity improvement works will be commenced. This includes the tendering for a new arrivals hall.
The Government has stated that further updates will be forthcoming.