_Jewar Airport Development

Airport development is an important aspect of streamlining and reducing turnaround time for business apart from being an epicentre of urban development. There are many examples across the globe of the development of such centres – be it in Heathrow or even Hong Kong. Therefore, the foundation laying of the Jewar Airport can certainly be a great harbinger for growth and development for the region around this airport including NOIDA.

Jewar Airport or the Noida International Greenfield Airport will become up in a 5,000-hectare area and when fully constructed it is estimated to cost INR 35,000 crores. On completion, this will have the distinction of being the largest airport in India. In the first phase, the airport will spread over 1,334 hectares and cost INR 5,000 crores and the project will be managed and operated by the Noida International Airport (NIAL).

The airport will have excellent ancillary connectivity to various industrial and logistics hubs in North India. The airport will have connectivity via the new metro rail corridor, Yamuna Expressway, Eastern Peripheral Expressway, and the planned rapid rail network, all of which will play a major role in improving the accessibility of this region from all parts of NCR.

Further, Aa warehousing and logistics hub could be expected to be set up in Tappal Bajna, which is approximately 7 km away from the new Jewar International Airport. It will be the second such hub albeit if the development of Yamuna Expressway Industrial Development Authority (YEIDA) goes ahead with its as proposed for the hub under its Master Plan Phase-2. Should both be developed, Tappal would be This could be the region’s second-largest warehousing hub.

The new Jewar International Airport at Noida will help the region to grow as a warehousing and logistic hub, which has been so far focused in Gurgaon.

NCR currently has 59 mn sq. ft (spread across 4700 acres) of which upwards of 50 mn is already occupied. Grade A warehouses make up 30% and while Grade B is 70% of total stock in NCR while 15.8% of the stock is vacant in the NCR market. Major 75-80% of these warehouses are in and around NH - 8 in Gurgaon. The key challenge faced by the market is the availability of high-grade warehousing hubs while demand for Grade A properties is on a continuous rise.

The Jewar airport, along with all infrastructure developments, over a period of 4-5 years will help unlock huge lands for manufacturing and warehousing sectors. It will also improve connectivity to Northern and eastern states from the logistics point of view.

Proposed Jewar International is also planned as a multi-modal transit hub at the Ground Transportation Centre to provide seamless connectivity between various public and private modes of transport. This will also help reduce overall cost and transit time.

Air connectivity is essential, especially for logistic business, and this initiative will open more opportunities for Warehousing and Manufacturing sectors.

Jewar Airport can easily open up and max available 2000-3000 acres for Manufacturing and Warehousing sectors. This will lead to 50mn+ sq ft of development in these sectors.

This will turn out to be a big push in the economy of UP and also create huge employment for UP and nearby States.

"The airport will have excellent ancillary connectivity to various industrial and logistics hubs in North India. The airport will have connectivity via the new metro rail corridor, Yamuna Expressway, Eastern Peripheral Expressway,
and the planned rapid rail network, all of which will play a major role in improving the accessibility of this region from all parts of NCR." 

BALBIRSINGH KHALSA
Executive Director (Industrial and Logistics) at Knight Frank India

1) With plans for Jewar Airport to be operational soon, what will attract investors towards the development of warehouses in Noida?

For the warehousing sector, a good transport network is primordial to ensure that businesses remain profitable on account of efficiencies. Proximity to airport, road infrastructure and smooth connectivity across key locations of Northern India. Most investors and landlords are looking for land with clear titles ranging between INR 10 mn - 15mn per acre.  The right land at the right price will ensure that take-up is fast.

2) What will be the major demand drivers for these warehouses apart from their proximity to the Airport?

Industrial and manufacturing activity across this region will be the major attraction apart from connectively to UP and NCR region. The region will fall on the Bharat Mala Road project which will allow it to be a feeder for other locations as well.

3) How competitive will the warehousing market in the eastern cluster (Noida, Ghaziabad, Greater Noida) be in comparison to the western cluster (Manesar, Sohna, Nuh, Faridabad), considering the already strong presence of IGI Airport near the western cluster?

Western cluster is highly developed and is evolving at an exponential pace, however, availability of land at the right pricing is a challenge right now. Hence, the Eastern cluster will need the right ecosystem also with a huge manufacturing base to drive the next level of growth in warehousing in this cluster.

4) What could be the challenges of developing warehouses in the areas near the Jewar Airport?

The biggest challenge will be land rates. Because of the speculation, rates have already started to escalate and is not making business sense. The second major challenge will be the actual time taken to create the right ecosystem for the warehousing sector to see demand in the region.