The General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA) has begun a pre-qualification process ahead of a duty free and duty paid request for proposal (RFP) for the new King Abdulaziz International Airport Terminal 1 (KAIA) in Jeddah.

According to GACA, the RFP will be for 5,000sq m of duty free space and 1,000sq m of duty paid space and not include the existing duty free and duty paid offerings in the North, South and Hajj terminals.

Lagardère Travel Retail, in partnership with Saudi Airlines Catering Company and Arabian Ground Handling Logistic Company, secured a contract to operate commercial spaces at the airport in 2016.

Qualified operators will be notified via e-mail to purchase the duty free and duty paid RFPs. The deadline for expression of interests is 25 July 2019 and the deadline for  submission of qualification documents is 1 August 2019. The winning bidder is expected to be announced in the next two or three months.

BIDDING CRITERIA

Bassem Abonomy, Commercial Operation Manager for the new KAIA Terminal told TRBusiness: “We are targeting the biggest duty free operators in the world. The idea is for the winning bidder to provide high-end brands and very digital high-end technology on the ground to serve passengers.”

The new terminal, designed to serve all airlines, is currently open to domestic passengers only, as construction work on the new international departures area continues. Once the tender is complete, GACA will gradually move passengers over to the new terminal. Full domestic and international operations in the new facility are expected to begin in 2020 with the existing north and south terminals eventually closing.