T he Airports Company of South Africa (Acsa) says close to R30 billion has been set aside for infrastructure investments, capacity upgrades and maintenance projects at OR Tambo International Airport (Ortia) over the next five to eight years. A 25-year master plan for the Gauteng city region aerotropolis has also been approved. The plan includes a fiveyear implementation plan to develop catalytic projects that Acsa says have a high likelihood of creating jobs, building businesses and converting the metropolitan area surrounding Ortia into a business hub over time. In line with this, plans are under way to develop the airport’s midfield cargo terminal to accommodate growing demand and create opportunities for black-owned businesses, which is part of the construction sector’s transformation strategy. An Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) has been conducted and phase 1 of the project has been designed in consultation with the cargo industry to accommodate up to one million tonnes of air cargo annually. Acsa says it now has the opportunity to develop new, state-of-the-art warehouses and ancillary service buildings to global standards. While EgyptAir Cargo started operations at Ortia in February, Acsa hopes to support further expansion of routes within the continent. Most nations in Africa are signatories to the African Continental Free Trade Area and Acsa says it is keen to play a role in developing intracontinental trade. Furthermore, the company wishes to grow services to “ever-growing” markets in the Far East, while South America looks to be a promising freight route. It adds that it hopes to expand its facilities that serve these commodities and grow into niche markets such as the pharmaceutical and biotechnology fields, and the e-commerce fulfilment sector. GMPcompliant facilities on-site at Ortia cater specifically for pharmaceutical goods.