King Shaka Airport set for transformation, driven by ACSA’s R21.7 billion growth ambition

King Shaka International Airport is on the brink of a transformative overhaul, with ACSA’s R21.7 billion investment set to boost local employment and invigorate the economy of KwaZulu-Natal. King Shaka International Airport (KSIA) is on the cusp of a major overhaul, with its operator, the Airports Company South Africa’s (ACSA) substantial R21.7 billion capital expenditure (capex) infrastructure investment across all of its airports, including Cape Town and OR Tambo International airports, over the next five years. This investment forms part of ACSA’s new ‘recover and growth’ strategy, effectively signalling that KSIA will soon be transformed into a hive of construction activity, with parallel infrastructure projects set to commence within the first quarter of this calendar year.

This is according to Sanjeev Gareeb, assistant general manager of operations at King Shaka International Airport. In an interview, Gareeb said the massive financial injection is anticipated to be a significant driving force for KwaZulu-Natal’s economy, promising significant job creation and a direct boost to the province’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) — a factor ACSA views as essential for sustainable aeronautical growth. Despite this significant investment news, KSIA continues to lag in its recovery.

It has yet to return to pre-Covid-19 traffic levels, unlike its major counterparts, O.R. Tambo and Cape Town International airports. Gareeb offered a candid assessment of the aviation sector’s mixed recovery and outlined the specific challenges and growth mechanisms pertinent to KSIA.