New Cargo Terminal Opened at VIA by President Muizzu

The new cargo terminal was opened yesterday at Velana International Airport by President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu.

The new terminal, built near the Hulhule’ Island Hotel (HIH), is about three times larger than the existing cargo terminal. It will have a storage capacity of 12,0000 metric tons of cargo at a time.

The major project to develop the VIA includes a new cargo terminal, a new runway and a fuel farm. The new runway is already in use and the new fuel farm is nearing completion.

Managing Director of the Maldives Airports Company Limited (MACL), Ibrahim Shareef Mohamed, gave a statement at the opening ceremony where he revealed that the cargo terminal had been completed in 2022, but the previous administration had not opened it for use. Shareef said that construction of the new cargo terminal had begun in 2018, as part of the VIA expansion project. The foundation stone of the new cargo terminal project was laid in January 2018 by China's Beijing Urban Construction Group (BUCG), during the administration of former President Yameen.

Shareef expressed his disappointment at the fact the terminal had not been utilized by the previous government, as every day that the terminal was not in use was a waste of the people’s money with no benefit. Thus, the current government is making every effort to move the cargo service to the new terminal as soon as possible.

Shareef thanked the President Dr. Muizzu for encouraging and guiding the opening of the new cargo terminal.