Algeria to build airport in northern province

Algeria is pushing ahead with plans to build a civilian airport in a northern province, where a project to construct a new city is underway.

The two projects in Boughezoul, south of the capital Algiers, are part of the North African Arab country’s plans to develop its logistics and tourism sectors with the help of oil and gas export earnings.

The public works ministry had designated three possible locations for the airport, which will serve the new city and surrounding areas.

“These locations have now been ruled out… a fourth site has been designated by the consultancy company,” the ministry said in a letter to parliament this week.

“This site is located around 67km from the new city… a decision on the site will be taken after it is approved by all relevant parties,” said the letter, published by local media.

The ministry said earlier that it had completed a feasibility and technical study on the airport project, paving the way for construction.

The airport, endorsed by the cabinet, is expected to give a strong push to Algeria’s air transport services, attract tourists and spur the economy, it added.

The new city of Boughezoul is based on sustainable development, new and renewable energies, and ecology, according to a ministry report last year.

It is designed to accommodate a population of 400,000 and offer 122,500 jobs by 2035, with the aim of relieving pressure on coastal regions, it said.

Gas-rich Algeria plans to expand its national carrier and create a new domestic airline to meet an expected increase in local and foreign tourism.

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The Opec member last year signed an agreement with French-Italian ATR group for the purchase of 16 aircraft for the domestic airline.

Flag carrier Air Algérie said the deal is within the framework of an ambitious investment plan intended to strengthen the fleet of the new company and pave the way for an expansion of flight networks.

Air traffic in North Africa has recovered beyond pre-pandemic levels, and Air Algerie’s deal is expected to boost traffic in the country by about half in the next five years, it added.