Colombia secures more funding for 'Coffee Airport'

The Colombian finance ministry’s fiscal council guaranteed resources of 216bn pesos (US$51mn) for the construction of phase I of the Aerocafé, the so-called Coffee Airport in Caldas department.

The resources will be added to 525bn pesos already contributed by the central government and 87.5bn from the region, said transport minister María Constanza García.

The cost of the phase is estimated at 828bn pesos, while the total investment in the project is 1.5tn pesos (about US$350mn).

The latest move enables the opening of the tender for the core works, García said on social media X.

The works in this phase include runways, taxiways, hangars and aircraft parking areas.

The first stage of the project has the environmental license from the Caldas regional autonomous corporation Corpocaldas.

The project involves the construction of an international airport on a 70ha plot of land in the municipality of Palestina, in the coffee-growing region of Colombia. 

According to the BNamericas database, the bidding process for phase I is expected to begin this December or January 2025.

The contract for the core works is due to be awarded and signed in February and June, respectively. The pre-construction phase will then take place between July 2025 and April 2026.

Construction is due to take 24 months.

The operation phase is expected to begin six months after the completion of construction.

The project has been discussed by several administrations, and among the many challenges is financial closure.

Aerocafé should enable a more efficient flow of tourists, business travelers and products to and from the so-called Coffee Axis, facilitating the development of trade and tourism and improving the competitiveness of the region.

The coffee-growing region includes the departments of Caldas, Risaralda and Quindío, and the northwestern regions of Tolima, southwestern Antioquia and the north and east of Valle del Cauca.