The upcoming Noida International Airport is all set to have one of the biggest multi-modal cargo hubs (MMCH) in the country after Air India's joint venture firm AISATS and Yamuna International Airport Pvt Ltd on Wednesday signed a concession agreement.
As part of the plan, Air India SATS Airport Services Private Limited (AISATS) will design, build, finance and operate the cargo hub, which is expected to be operational in 2024. The MMCH will provide quick, convenient and intermodal connectivity to and from manufacturing hubs across the country.
It includes an integrated cargo terminal and warehousing and logistics zone, coming up to covering 87 acres of land.
The hub will provide a Coolport for handling temperature-sensitive cargo such as perishables and pharmaceuticals, along with separate domestic and international cargo terminal zones and dedicated courier terminals to handle express courier shipments.
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Additionally, the MMCH will house a bulk utilisation program (BUP) facility for integrators and global forwarders, the AISATS said, along with a consolidation centre for freight forwarders and agents, a customs-controlled warehouse, a logistics park for e-commerce players and 3PL warehouses, and a trucking centre with world-class parking amenities.
Through this facility, AISATS aims to provide India's logistics sector with a cargo processing and transportation grid that will help reduce logistics costs significantly, streamline processes for seamless coordination, and bring speed and transparency to the country's supply chain, according to a release.
The company's technology-driven solutions such as a cloud-based cargo management system for end-to-end cargo tracking, reporting and network connectivity will benefit all stakeholders.
The company will also provide a single-window cargo community system to enable more efficient communications and a smart warehouse with technologies such as automated dimension scanners, conveyors, radio frequency identified trackers, autonomous vehicles, video analytics-based monitoring.
"The AISATS MMCH at Noida will play an integral part in providing just-in-time cargo facilities for the North India region and will support in levelling up the Indian logistics and air cargo sectors with state-of-the-art infrastructure, value-added services and improved cost efficiency," Nipun Aggarwal, Chairman of AISATS, said.
AISATS is a 50:50 joint venture between Air India Ltd and SATS Ltd. The concession agreement was signed between the CEOs of AISATS and YIAPL Christoph Schnellmann and Sanjay Gupta on May 30 in Noida.
The strategic location of this first-of-its-kind cargo hub will seamlessly connect multiple modes of transportation with consolidated ancillary and value-added services, establishing a highly efficient route for cargo throughput across India and abroad, AISATS said.
Sanjay Gupta, CEO of AISATS, expressed his excitement over the project and their partnership with YIAPL. He acknowledged the tremendous potential of Noida International Airport and Uttar Pradesh to become a world-class cargo hub after this project.
"Our goal is to enhance the state's supply chain efficiency and make Noida a strategic cargo gateway to North India and beyond," Gupta said.
His sentiments were echoed by the CEO of SATS Gateway Services, which is in a 50:50 joint venture with Air India to form AISATS.
"India is one of the world's fastest-growing economies with huge opportunities for growth in the air cargo logistics space. Establishing an integrated logistics gateway in Noida through our AISATS joint venture with Tata Group's Air India will help develop the region into a strategic air cargo and export hub," said Bob Chi, CEO of SATS Gateway Services.
"Such a development also accelerates the expansion of our global air cargo hub handling capabilities as part of SATS' twin-engine growth strategy," he added.
With agency inputs.
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