Minister of Economics Fayyaz Ismail, on Monday, released a statement assuring that the administration of President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih did not hold any discussions with GMR Group of India.
Minister Fayyaz released the statement in response to circulating rumours that suggested leading members of GMR had flown to Maldives and met with top government officials.
Despite refuting the story, Minister Fayyaz stated that GMR was welcome to invest in Maldives similar to other foreign businesses.
The ministers further attributed difficulties faced by the Maldivian government in relation to GMR, to the actions taken by previous administrations.
In 2010, the government of former president Mohamed Nasheed handed over operations of Velana International Airport to GMR for a 25-year period.
The contract was terminated during the administration of former President Dr Mohamed Waheed Hassan Manik after which the Singapore International Arbitration Centre ordered Maldives to pay USD 270 million to GMR as compensation. The payment has since been settled.
Management of VIA was then given to Maldives Airports Company Ltd (MACL). The company is currently carrying out several development projects in VIA including plans to establish a fire fighting unit, a harbour, international terminal and a fuel farm.
While MACL received financial aid from the Chinese government and several middle eastern nations the company had previously assured that considerable profits could be garnered from VIA while simultaneously paying off the loans.
The government of Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom spent a total of USD 1 billion on the development of VIA.
Although the GMR agreement did not include the replacement of the 45-year-old runway, when it was annulled, the company had announced plans to invest USD 150 million in order to construct a runway. Efforts to establish a new terminal had also commenced.
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