Construction is under way on a new transport shed at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) in Nairobi, Kenya which is expected to increase cargo handling capacity by 10%. The new shed is scheduled to be operational by September.
According to Construction Review Online, the airport’s handling capacity is currently at a million tonnes annually. Once the new transit shed is complete, capacity is expected to increase by 150 000 tonnes a year.
Bryn Woolley, managing director at Aircross SA, told FTW Online that the increasing demand for Kenya’s horticulture exports could be part of the motivation for the upgrade. This is supported by the fact that the new shed, named Mitchell Cotts, will include cold rooms, used for the preservation of flowers and vegetables. The new facility will have an export area, import area and a dry cargo area.
Business Daily Africa reports that another factor behind the construction of Mitchell Cotts is the increasing competition from South Africa and Ethiopia, challenging Nairobi’s status as a regional cargo hub.
