Maldives Airports Company Limited (MACL) has contracted the development of the previous runway of Velana International Airport (VIA) to China's Beijing Urban Construction Group (BUCG). The agreement was signed by the Managing Director of MACL Ibrahim Shareef Mohamed and General Manager of BCUG Luo Wei. This initiative is part of the 20-year masterplan to develop the airport, launched by President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu in January 2024.
The signing ceremony was graced by the Minister of Economic Development and Trade Mohamed Saeed. Speaking at the ceremony, the minister stated that several questions had been directed to the government since the start of the comprehensive airport development project. However, he revealed that no questions were asked following the visible progress made by the government. The minister emphasised the strong link between the development of VIA and the nation's economic development, stressing the project's importance in transforming the Maldives into a developed nation.
During the ceremony, MACL's Managing Director Ibrahim Shareef also underscored the project's relevance to economic growth. Noting that the runway was currently functioning as a taxiway, he warned that any emergency closure of the Code F runway could disrupt the entire airport's operations, potentially leading to a complete halt of the functioning of the economy.
The previous runway of VIA was stopped to operations in 2022, when operations began on the Code F runway. Following this, the runway has been used as a taxiway for the past years.