GMR Infrastructure Ltd has made its first foray in the international arena. A joint consortium that includes the GMR Infrastructure Ltd has bagged the contract to develop Sabiha Gokcen International Airport in Istanbul.

The Build-Operate-Transfer project includes not only constructing a new international terminal capable of handling 10 million passengers annually within 30 months but also managing the existing domestic and international terminals.

The total investment is estimated at about €400 million. The project has a debt-equity ratio of 18:20. GMR Infrastructure, a listed company, holding a 40 per cent stake in the consortium, would pump in around €32 million of the €80 million equity, said Mr Madhu Terdal, Chief Financial Officer, Corporate Strategic Finance, GMR Group.

Company officials added that the funding would be financed through internal accruals and no special purpose vehicle was being set up for the project.

The other consortia members are Limak Insaat Sanavi San Ve Tic A.S. Turkey (Limak), which has a 40 per cent stake, and Malaysia Airports Holding that has a 20 per cent stake. ¡°The consortium will generate income through a combination of aeronautical and non-aeronautical revenues,¡± officials said without divulging details of how much revenues would flow to which partner.

The BOT concession terms for the airport would be for 20 years, while the new international terminal would have to be constructed within 30 months from the transfer of the facility. The consortium is to get possession of the airport within the next three months.

The total concession fee of about Rs 10,808 crore ($2.7 billion) has to be paid to the Turkish Government Authority over the 20-year concession period.