Air transportation is critical for economic development in the Maldives, an archipelago country in southeast Asia that relies on tourism. The airport is the only air gateway for international passengers and air cargo in the country, so the project to expand and improve it has particular importance.

The project includes a new runway, apron, cargo terminal, fuel farm and fuel hydrant system. The airport remained in service during the project period, and there had to be continuous off-peak construction and limited work hours, with work on the new runway permitted only from midnight to 5:30 a.m.

Maldives is a low-lying country. Building the project involved reclaiming more than 750,000 sq m of land. Mohamed Saeed, the country’s minister of economic development and trade, expects the airport to generate more than $4.7 billion in net revenue for the region.

In all, the construction created about 9,000 jobs, according to the team. The project broke ground in November 2016 and was completed in March 2024. Aircraft landing wait times were reduced to three minutes, from 15, and hourly flight capacity increased to 21, from eight.