Currently, Swissport subsidiary Swissport Tanzania is the only ground handling services provider at Kilimanjaro International airport. The government has decided to open up the market as one company has dominated the handling scene in the country for many years.
Swissport accounts for a huge share of global airline operations, providing ground services to more than 230m passengers and handling 4.3m tonnes of cargo every year at more than 280 stations.
Kilimanjaro International airport occupies a site of 109 square kilometres and can accommodate any size commercial aircraft. Low population densities in surrounding areas also allow for easy approach and take off, without noise restrictions.
Kilimanjaro Airports Development Company (Kadco) has issued invitation for bids, which are open to National Competitive Tendering. Prospective bidders must comply with the licensing requirements as stated in the civil aviation ground handling service regulation of 2007.
All bids must be accompanied by a bid security in an acceptable form at KSh10m (US$99,100), and bids will be opened thereafter in public and in the presence of bidders' representatives.
The submission date for bids is May 3, 2018 – and late submissions will not be considered.
This year, Swissport Tanzania plans to invest KSh4.08bn (US$40.4m) in ground support equipment and improving export handling facilities at Kilimanjaro airport, according to Swissport CEO Mrisho Yassin.
Yassin said: “Aviation technology is changing rapidly and to be competitive we have to keep abreast of the trend by investing heavily.”
Swissport has invested KSh40bn (US$396m) in cargo handling infrastructure, GSE and IT over the last five years.
