Several Indian and international aviation and logistics companies such as Air India, Singapore Airport Terminal Services, Menzies, Bobba, Swissport, Bird Group and Worldwide Flight Services have responded, individually or through tie-ups with each other, to two requests for proposals to set up a new cargo facility at Delhi airport and upgrade the existing one.

The RFPs were sent by Delhi International Airport Limited, the GMR-led consortium that is modernising and operating Delhi airport. The last date to submit the bids is February 16.

Delhi accounts for around 25 per cent of total air cargo transported in the country.

An executive close to the development said Air India has tied up with SATS, Bird Group has tied up with WFS and Menzies with Bobba to bid for the cargo project.

All the joint ventures that have submitted RFPs have ground-handling contracts for major Indian airports.

AI-SATS is the ground-handling service provider for the new Bangalore airport and Menzies-Bobba for the new Hyderabad airport. Bird Group-WFS recently won the ground-handling contract for Delhi airport.

The scope of the cargo project includes building, financing, and operating a 70,000 square metre greenfield cargo terminal as a twin facility to the existing one which will also be upgraded and redesigned, making for a combined area of 150,000 square metres.

Sources said features like enhanced facilities for express cargo and perishable goods will be part of the project.

According to an official statement from DIAL, the upgraded cargo facility will have a capacity to handle 1 million tonnes of cargo a year. The facility currently has six stands for parking freighter aircraft which will go up to around 16.

Limited cargo infrastructure has severely stunted the growth of cargo airlines in the country. An executive from courier company Blue Dart said its tonnage has increased almost five times in the last ten years, but the space allocated to it at airports like Delhi has not changed.

Frankfurt airport in Germany handles 5,200 tonnes of cargo a day, much more than an Indian airport handles in one month.