VIEW FROM THE TOP
NEW AIRPORT PROGRESSING ACCORDING TO PLAN FEDERICO PATIÑO Director General of GACM
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Q: What progress has been made on NAICM’s development?
A: During 2015, we focused on the design and planning of
A: The project was announced in September 2014 by
the project. Part of this was the design of the master plan.
President Peña Nieto. Since then, GACM has hired the best
It involved the active participation of all the parties involved
team worldwide. We have the world’s best consultants,
in the project, and balancing their needs. We held over
Parsons as our Project Manager, the best architect in the
230 meetings with regulatory and international agencies,
world, Norman Foster in partnership with FR-EE Fernando
national and international airlines, government agencies
Romero, Dutch engineering firm NACO and Arup, which is
and service providers, to hear their needs and concerns and
responsible for the master plan. In that regard, 2014 and
take them into account in the design of the master plan.
2015 were years dedicated to planning and carrying out the required tests. Several studies were carried out even
The biggest challenge for me is to prove that Mexico can
before this point. An airport is a project that involves
carry out projects of this magnitude in a transparent and
complex logistical development and demands a high level
honest way. GACM endeavors to become a reference for
of sophistication.
projects of this scale. Also, we want to complete the project on time and within budget, especially given its level of
We then focused on the design, always keeping various
complexity. This project involves a series of contingencies
questions in mind: What sort of airport do we want, a
and uncertainties, and we constantly encounter surprises
regional or an international hub? What was the desired
that we must solve. The possibility of making a mistake
capacity and the expected growth? This was necessary to
with decisions is always present, so we try to have the best
plan the size of the project according to passenger and
counseling possible. It is also paramount to have a sense of
airline growth trends. The project was designed to meet
urgency because often we do not have much time to react
the country’s needs, so that it could serve as the gateway
to certain situations.
from Mexico to the world. Starting in 2016, the construction began with preliminary projects for site preparation, such as
Q: What strategies are being implemented by the different
the 33km perimeter fence, access roads, construction of the
companies involved to optimize processes and the areas
on-site offices, the removal of debris, the temporary sewage
where cost overruns are arising?
and ground leveling. All those projects are now completed.
A: Only 6 percent of the megaprojects constructed
In the same year, we tendered around 65 percent of the
around the world are finished on time and within budget.
project’s value, awarding runways 2 and 3, the foundation
We are one of the first projects in Mexico and the first of
piles and the electrical substation, among others.
its kind to use BIM (Building Information Modeling). This methodology helps us use intelligent, connected workflows
In 2017, we started the construction of the terminal
to help improve predictability and productivity. We also
foundations, the control tower and runways 2, 3 and 6. The
work closely with the project manager, contractors and
runways are being built simultaneously, starting with 2, 3
supervision entities to develop management strategies.
and 6 in the first phase and 1, 4 and 5 in the second. This year we started to see the project take shape in a tangible
NAICM is also a self-financing project. Recently, we issued
way. We have 7,000 trucks moving material every day and
green bonds for up to US$4 billion, which gives us a total
40,000 people working on the project. By next year, we
financing of US$6 billion. The financing scheme is backed
expect to have generated 160,000 direct and indirect jobs.
by the current airport’s excess cash flows and eventually by the new airport. Fortunately, the financing scheme is
Q: What challenges has GACM faced in the initial
based on the TUA that is charged to most passengers, and
construction phase and in the creation of the masterplan
is charged in dollars. This protects the private financing
for tenders and construction?
from the peso’s devaluation and volatility in the markets.
