The Maldives government has awarded the contract of land reclamation in three local islands to Capital Marine and Construction Private Limited; an Indian contractor, for regional airport development projects.
Under the agreement, Capital Marine and Construction Private Limited will execute land reclamation projects in Sh. Bilehfahi, B. Thulhaadhoo, and Th. Vilufushi; with a combined project total of MVR 654 million.
The Director General of Ministry of National Planning, Housing and Infrastructure (MNPHI) Fathimath Shana Farooq signed the agreement on behalf of the government while Capital Marine’s Managing Director Sivaraj Manivannan signed on behalf of the contractor.
Capital Marine was registered in the Maldives in 2014. The company has two Sri Lankan nationals in its board while the company’s shareholders include Manivannan and Capital Investment and Finance Limited, a UK-based firm.
Project components include reclamation of 56.34 hectares of land in Bilehfahi while 44.70 hectares of land from each, will be reclaimed in both Thulhaadhoo and Vilufushi.
The airport development projects in Bilehfahi, Thulhaadhoo, and Vilufushi alongside Makunudhoo, Berianfaru, and Magoodhoo are part of the current government’s broader initiative to expand domestic aviation in the Maldives.
The airports are developed through a cross-subsidy policy, in which the government will be providing islands to contractors for tourist resort development as a form of incentive or payment.