Airport Running Costs Must Be Reduced By 30-50%: Adani Airports' CEO

Adani Airports CEO Arun Bansal said on Wednesday that the cost of running airports must be reduced by 30-50 per cent in the coming years, highlighting the Indian aviation market's development potential.

The business currently operates seven airports and is building another.

Bansal is bullish on the Indian market and said that it would like to operate more airports and ultimately become the world's leading airport operator.

He added that Adani Airports is investing in both physical and digital segments and is dedicated to increasing capacity.

For the last 20-30 years, Indian aviation has been taken for granted and the cost of running airports is expected to fall by 30-50 per cent in the coming years, he said.

Adani Airports is optimistic about the country's aviation industry and plans to “do more airports,” according to Bansal, who added that the first phase will see Navi Mumbai airport open in December 2024.

The first section of Navi Mumbai airport will have a passenger handling capacity of 20 million. Adani Airports also operates Mumbai International Airport.

“We are also working on (establishing) an aviation institute,” he said at the CAPA aviation summit here.

India is one of the world's fastest-expanding aviation markets, with a large number of planes on order from different Indian carriers.