Seven Consortia Qualify to Bid for Running Hurghada Airport

Ten consortia applied to prequalify for the contract to manage, operate and develop Hurghada International Airport, and seven have been cleared to go through to the next stage, Egypt's civil aviation ministry has said, as reported by Egypt Independent, Mubasher and Arab Finance.

Civil Aviation Minister Sameh al-Hefny reviewed the tender with International Finance Corporation officials on Friday 11 September, on the sidelines of the EIAS 2026 airshow at El Alamein. He met the IFC's regional director for North Africa and the Horn of Africa, Ary Naim, its Egypt country manager, Saad Sabra, and its infrastructure projects specialist, Mohamed Mehni.

The applications were assessed by an evaluation committee against the criteria set out in the request-for-qualifications document. The qualifying consortia are now being notified, and the next stage covers issuing the request-for-proposals documents and setting the timetable for bids.

Al-Hefny said the airport's assets stay in state ownership and under full state sovereignty, and that bringing in private operators is meant to raise operating efficiency and improve the passenger experience. The process, he said, is being run to ensure transparency and competitiveness. He credited the IFC with providing technical and advisory support.

Also present were the ministry's permanent undersecretary, Eng. Amr Negati; the head of the Holding Company for Airports and Air Navigation, Eng. Ayman Arab; and the head of the Egyptian Airports Company, Capt. Wael El-Nashar.

Neither the ministry nor the outlets named the ten applicants or the seven survivors, gave a date for bids, or said how long the concession would run.

Hurghada International is the main gateway to this coast, so who ends up running it reaches every arriving passenger and every business that depends on them.