Bnamericas Published: Thursday, January 18, 2024 Airport hub 43,000+ global companies doing business in the region 102,000+ key contacts related to companies and projects news and interviews about your industry in English A new metropolitan international airport in the city of Orotina is planned to be built to replace the existing Juan Santamaría International (SJO) Airport the existing airport is capable of handling 3.2 million passengers but lacks the required infrastructure to serve growing passenger needs The Government of Costa Rica expects construction on the new airport to commence in 2018 which is expected to achieve full operational capability by 2047 will be built and operated through a public-private partnership It will be able to serve the increasing number of business travellers and tourists flying to and / or from Costa Rica Situated near the central and south Pacific areas the new airport is anticipated to improve the country’s tourism industry and economy It will also help improve infrastructure and land development in Costa Rica by increasing international access to the country The proposed greenfield airport will be located in Orotina canton in the province of Alajuela approximately 56km west of San Jose near the Pacific coast Situated 250m above the sea level, the project site will have low impact of wind, which will enable safe flights even in difficult weather conditions. The effect of fog and ashes on the new Orotina airport will be less than at the SJO Airport Costa Rica’s Orotina International Airport is part of the country’s plan to modernise and enhance air transport The project is being managed by the Dirección General de Aviación Civil (DGAC) of Costa Rica DGAC issued a tender in October 2015 to conduct a study and determine possible locations for the new airport The Government of the Republic of Costa Rica received a master plan and conceptual design of Orotina International Airport in May 2017 The first phase is expected to cost $1.9bn whereas the total cost of the project is estimated to be $3.5bn which will be financed through non-governmental funds The Central American Corporation for Air Navigation Services (COCESNA) provided funding for the airport’s master plan The project is expected to create approximately 80,000 direct and indirect jobs The Orotina Metropolitan International Airport will be developed in three phases which will involve the construction of a 460,000m² terminal and other facilities The first phase will include the construction a 128,000m² of passenger terminal, two runways capable of handling large aircraft and a main access route to lead passengers to the terminal via the airport city The second and third phases will add 146,000m² and 186,000m² of space through the expansion of the second runway Sufficient space will be provided to accommodate necessary facilities for future expansion The 4F category movement areas have been designed to enable the operation of wide-body aircraft the first-phase airport will have the capacity to handle 7.8 million passengers a year which is expected to grow to 20 million a year over the following 20 years The airport will be able to handle approximately 50 million passengers at its maximum capacity The master plan also proposed certain infrastructure improvements including the construction of a new rapid bus transit line as well as the expansion of Route 27 to increase the passage between San Jose and the province of Puntarenas A new highway is also proposed to be built in Alajuela to connect Pozón de Orotina and the city of San Ramón A rail connection linking Orotina with San José is also planned Mott MacDonald received a one-year contract worth approximately $1.5m from the COCESNA as well as design a master plan for the Costa Rica’s new international airport in June 2016 The scope of work included traffic forecasting Other contractors involved in the feasibility study include Costa Rica-based FSA Give your business an edge with our leading industry insights View all newsletters from across the GlobalData Media network COSTA RICA'S LEADING ENGLISH LANGUAGE NEWSPAPER Costa Rica’s emerging plan to build a major new international airport in Orotina took a major step forward Monday with the signing of a $1.5 million contract with a British firm to conduct feasibility studies President Luis Guillermo Solís signed the contract, granted in a public bid, with British engineering company Mott MacDonald to conduct technical and financial studies on the new airport The studies should be completed within a year though the airport is not expected to open until after 2025 It would be capable of receiving wide-body airplanes like the Boeing 777 and Airbus 340 “Costa Rica has the capacity to carry out large projects and this administration is willing to break the stagnation and paralysis we’ve had on moving forward with essential public works,” Solís said “These large projects will bring employment and development and are key to strengthening the country’s competitiveness.” The studies are to include recommendations for the terminal design and runway locations as well as possible funding options for an airport in Orotina Under the contract the company will have 12 months to assess all variables involved including financial meteorological and environmental requirements of the project The company will deliver a basic design recommendation for the new terminal estimated costs and the financing model for the project as well as the construction of the terminal will be granted through a separate public bid Solís said the construction of the new terminal will boost the economy in the Pacific region and will be a catalyst for the probable expansion of Route 27 the main highway connecting the the Central Valley to the Pacific coast “We should also start planning the construction of a new train to the [Pacific] region,” Solís said Results of a 2011 study conducted by the Technical Council of the Civil Aviation Authority (CETAC) showed that the new terminal would require a 1,200-hectare property and would have a lifespan of at least 80 years CETAC vice president Eduardo Montero said that study will be the basis for Mott MacDonald’s research “So far we know that 1,200 hectares are required to build a 4F category terminal capable of receiving large airliners,” he said Montero noted the project sparked a great interest in the market as bids were received from 10 consulting firms Casa Presidencial reported in a news release that Mott MacDonald “has 150 years of experience in big projects in 140 countries.” the firm conducted studies for the expansion of Heathrow airport in London the design of the Hong Kong airport and consulting projects for terminals in Singapore and Turkey Contact L. Arias at larias@ticotimes.net Plans for a major international airport in the Alajuela canton of Orotina have been postponed Costa Rica’s Public Works and Transport Ministry (MOPT) says “We have to forget about the airport in Orotina for a few years and concentrate on the Santamaría,” Transport Minister Rodolfo Méndez said, per La Nación The news means Juan Santamaría International Airport (SJO) near San José will remain Costa Rica’s primary airport for the foreseeable future Studies conducted before the pandemic indicated SJO can feasibly serve in this role until at least 2040 it is easy to understand that it has more life,” Méndez said “What we have to see is how we manage the extension of that life to meet the demand in the best possible way.” The Costa Rican government will seek to extend that contract Méndez has publicly questioned the need for an airport to replace SJO “If we wanted to have another airport to replace Juan Santamaría the truth is that the economic conditions of the country and the studies that exist are not conducive to that,” he said at the time Construction on the new Orotina airport was scheduled to begin in 2018, according to former Transport Minister Carlos Villalta The proposed airport would have several advantages its lower elevation would allow planes to take off with a larger payload and reach more-distant destinations The proposed location also remained close to the Greater Metropolitan Area (GAM) while providing tourists easier access to popular Pacific Coast destinations A report conducted by British firm Mott MacDonald indicated several infrastructure improvements would be necessary to support a major international airport outside the Greater Metropolitan Area The firm recommended that Costa Rica expand Route 27 build a new highway connecting Pozón de Orotina and San Ramón and re-start rail service between Orotina and San José more than 2.4 million international visitors came to Costa Rica via airplane and 1.8 million transited through Juan Santamaría International Airport Just under 600,000 people transited through Daniel Oduber Quirós International Airport — an 8.5% increase over 2018 Over recent years, SJO has added four boarding gates and a new taxiway to support its continued growth. Aeris is contemplating a series of additional improvements to the airport but those may be delayed due to falling revenues associated with the pandemic Municipal officials in the Alajuela canton of Orotina have asked the U.S-based Georgia Tech Foundation to conduct a feasibility study to determine whether conditions exist for the central Pacific community to begin hosting large foreign companies looking to relocate to Costa Rica The Inter-American Development Bank will fund the study foundation president Emmanuel Hess said officials are looking to generate employment outside the Greater Metropolitan Area A full report on the study’s findings likely will be published by February 2015 Municipal officials say Orotina could become an ideal location for the hosting of logistics operations to attract large foreign companies The canton is located only 21 kilometers from Puerto Caldera the country’s main Pacific shipping port the main highway connecting San José to the province of Puntarenas A new international airport in Orotina also is being discussed with the Civil Aviation Authority currently studying a proposal The study will measure Orotina’s logistics capabilities and potential operational costs taking into account land values and international shipping fees It also hopes to identify potential companies that might be interested in investing in the area The Association of Specific Development for the Preservation of the Cultural Heritage of Orotina (ADEPPCO) with the support of the Ministry of Culture and Youth will host the inauguration ceremony of the restoration works of the Locomotive 130 and the Orotinense Railway History Mural “We would like to invite everyone to the inauguration ceremony,” both institutions mentioned.  The activity will occur this Friday, December 09, 2022, at 10 a.m., at the Old Orotina Railroad Station Minister of Culture and Youth; Fabiola Romero National Director of DINADECO; the deputies from Alajuela Leslye Rubén Bojorges León and Daniela Rojas Salas; as well as Benjamín Rodríguez Vega Mayor of Orotina; Gilbert Tencio Rodríguez Operations Manager of INCOFER; Sully López Ruiz Director of the Center for Research and Conservation of Cultural Heritage The project began in 2015 with a small group of neighbors interested in restoring locomotive 130 with the advice of the Ministry of Culture and Youth the development association in charge of executing the plan was established.  Once the Specific Development Association for the Preservation of the Cultural Heritage of Orotina (ADEPPCO) was formed arrangements were made with INCOFER to move the locomotive from Puntarenas to Orotina “For us, here in Orotina, the railroad activity is more than a job; it is part of our culture and identity We wanted to have here a locomotive that could reflect the best moments of the railroad to the Pacific,” said Giovanni Castaldini Ramirez The restoration work began in January 2022 and is now in its final stage This process has relied on financial contributions from members resources provided by the community through activities such as bingos and raffles help from the Municipality of Orotina and the National Directorate of Community Development (DINADECO) “The ‘130’ is a well-loved locomotive by the people of Orotina It was an electric and environmentally friendly locomotive and people remember them with great affection; it is present in the memory of the people of Orotina,” explained the president of ADEPPCO this locomotive was built in Germany in 1956 It was the last one running until the railroad was closed.  there will be guided tours to learn about engine 130 those who assist will be able to visit the Orotinense Railway History Mural Costa Rican police on Tuesday night captured a small crocodile in San Jerónimo de Orotina after it had appeared in the area about a week ago and grown accustomed to sunbathing along a path that kids use to walk to school police decided – aptly – to relocate the reptile when the crocodile returned to a small creek after sunbathing police officers using a net managed to captured it they released it in the nearby Tárcoles River This is the first-ever sighting of a crocodile in San Jerónimo de Orotina. Police officers involved in the croc’s capture also took part in recent relocations in Quepos, Puntarenas and Jacó Crocodile attacks and the relocation of aggressive crocodiles has become more common in Costa Rica in the last year. Just last week, a wildlife expert was mauled while teaching Coast Guard officials how to capture crocodiles Habitat destruction and the expansion of human settlements has led many crocs to flee their territories in search of new homes To read more about the issues Costa Rica is facing with its crocodile population see: Costa Rica’s crocodile conundrum The Band of Orotina will participate in England’s largest New Year’s Day Parade in London on January 1 The band will receive its credentials during a ceremony on September 13 at 9 a.m The event will be attended by Culture Minister Sylvie Durán and Robert Bone execute director of the London New Year’s Day Parade Known by Londoners at LNYDP, the inaugural parade in 1987 included 2,000 performers. Recent iterations have welcomed more than 10,000 performers from across the world and a street audience of more than 500,000 It won’t be the first time a Costa Rican band is showcased at a major international parade. Banda Municipal de Acosta represented Costa Rica when it participated in the 2019 Rose Parade in Pasadena The Band of Orotina was founded in 1990 and is comprised of 220 members the Costa Rican highway is already in need of expansion The Costa Rican government on Wednesday signed a letter of understanding with Autopistas del Sol for a three-phase plan to amplify the highway which connects San José to the Pacific province of Puntarenas “We continue to build trust through agreements that allow concrete works that are essential for the development of Costa Rica,” said Costa Rica’s President Completed in 2010, the so-called Caldera Highway shaved hours off the trip to popular Pacific beach destinations like Jacó and Manuel Antonio. But its popularity contributed to rapid deterioration — not to mention heavy traffic on the highway which has only one lane in each direction in many parts Costa Rican authorities are currently conducting traffic studies which Casa Presidencial says will be completed by the end of February The government did not provide a timetable for when construction would occur Costa Rica is the first country in the world to produce vehicle oils without the need for hydrocarbon exploitation. METALUB inaugurated the first re-refining plant for motor lubricants in Central America This 6,600-square-meter facility has the capacity to process 500,000 liters of used oil per month The company is the result of a mixed investment of approximately $12 million from private sources a private bond issue through Mercado de Valores and a $3 million loan from the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) it collected used oils and sent them to the United States for re-refining this process is carried out entirely in Costa Rica The lubricants produced meet the global standards of the American Petroleum Institute (API) “METALUB produces re-refined lubricants with global standards comparable in quality and performance to the leading transnational brands We are a sustainable option that protects both engines and the environment we are an example of innovation in service of protecting the planet,” explained Jorge Jimenez producing a single barrel of base oil (material for vehicle lubricants) requires the extraction of 84 barrels of crude oil through METALUB’s re-refining processes only 1.25 barrels of used oil are needed to produce a full barrel of base oil used oil is burned or improperly disposed of MINAE data show that most used oil ends its life as cheap fuel for various industries This process generates high carbon emissions and consumes a non-renewable resource that took the planet centuries to produce in less than a day used oil can end up being improperly and unlawfully disposed of in soils and rivers It is estimated that just 1 liter of lubricating oil can contaminate up to 1 million liters of water equivalent to the drinking water supply of 28 people for 1 year has the capacity to produce any type of lubricant from re-refined oils keeping these resources in the country and generating local employment then-Environment Minister René Castro called transportation the “Achilles’ heel” of Costa Rica’s carbon-neutrality ambitions Vehicles are still responsible for more than half the country’s carbon emissions and every government attempt to curb this pollution has failed While there are still a few programs designed to encourage people to switch to more efficient vehicles, the current government’s plan to reduce vehicle emissions hinges on the creation of a rapid transit system to serve the Greater Metropolitan Area (GAM, for its initials in Spanish). With the COP21 climate talks in Paris now underway rumors of this hypothetical project are getting thrown around quite a bit Here is everything we know about plans for an energy-efficient GAM transportation system So far that is all the public (and likely the government itself) knows about the project The government is awaiting conclusions from technical studies before deciding on a final plan INCOFER is the only government entity in Costa Rica that has both the power to control public transportation and build infrastructure Though the country’s Transport Ministry (MOPT) also has these abilities they are separated into different councils with separate budgets This bureaucratic organization makes it impossible for the government to consider any type of public transit system other than a train without reorganizing itself Though the administration has already declared its support for a train public transport experts say it may not be the best option Public Works and Transport (MOPT) Minister Carlos Villalta announced Wednesday that the construction of Costa Rica’s new Metropolitan International Airport will begin next year and that a first stage of the terminal will be fully operational by 2027 The $3.5 billion project will be built in the Alajuela canton of Orotina some 60 kilometers (37 miles) from San José The project will be financed through a public-private alliance as the government does not have the required resources to build it “A first stage of the project will be ready in 2027 with an investment of $1.9 billion The fourth and final stage should be completed by 2047,” he added The chosen location has the best characteristics for the airport according to a report from MOPT’s Technical Council of Civil Aviation The report comprises 24 technical studies that concluded that building a terminal at sea level represents a series of aeronautical and commercial advantages it allows planes to take off carrying more payload and also allows them to reach more distant destinations The area is free of natural obstacles such mountains or high buildings President Luis Guillermo Solís signed an executive decree declaring that the acquisition of 370 private properties that the government will buy for building the project is a matter of public interest Decree 40.431-MOPT seeks to avoid price speculation and ensure a fair price for acquiring those properties Carlos Segnini — a former Transport Minister — explained that a technical report performed by British firm Mott MacDonald estimated a budget of $41.3 million for the purchase of all the properties The country’s two international terminals currently handle just over 5.8 million passengers a year, of which 83 percent pass through the Juan Santamaría International Airport (SJO) in Alajuela, according to the Civil Aviation Administration The consulting firm projects a demand of 7.8 million passengers for the first year of operation The figure would grow to some 20 million in 2047 and to 50 million by the end of the century The new airport would have the capacity to operate at least 38 flights per hour: 21 departures and 17 arrivals The project’s area spans 1,500-hectares representing almost eight times the area of the SJO Airport The Mott MacDonald study concluded that the expansion of Route 27 which connects San José with the province of Puntarenas is necessary for the operation of the new terminal The firm estimated that Route 27 currently allows passage of up to 2,165 people during rush hour and that this capacity must be increased to at least 3,685 people per hour The British company recommended building a new highway in Alajuela connecting Pozón de Orotina and San Ramón and a train connecting Orotina with San José The project states that once the new international terminal enters into operation will only operate local flights and flights from small aircraft and private jets It will also receive aircraft that require repairs “It is also clear for us that [the SJO] also would serve as an alternative in case of emergency,” Minister Villalta said The SJO recently underwent a renovation and expansion and earlier this year the terminal administrator announced a $100 million investment in coming years That investment includes the expansion of the runway which began last month with the expropriation of an adjacent property that land was home to a restaurant famous for providing its customers with a great viewpoint to watch planes landing or taking off SJO operates flights from 27 airlines to some 70 international connections Tourism Minister Mauricio Ventura said that from the almost three million people who entered the country in 2016 “Air terminals are our the main ports of entry to our country and for that reason we applaud this effort,” he said railroads served a major role in Costa Rica’s development as a country Costa Rica hopes to “return to the rail legacy of our grandparents,” said Elizabeth Briceño Jiménez executive president of the Costa Rican Railroad Institute (INCOFER) the Ministry of Planning and Economic Policy (MIDEPLAN) provided INCOFER ¢314,458,200 (about $553,000) to conduct feasibility studies on the 131 km of railroad between Alajuela and Puntarenas Along with an electric train in the Greater Metropolitan Area (GAM) and an electric freight train in Limón the reactivation of the railroad to the Pacific is among the projects planned by INCOFER between this year and 2023 “For the railroads to achieve again the railroad to the Pacific is something that fills us with great enthusiasm,” Briceño said “We are sure that this will contributes to the economic recovery of the area and will generate employment and that it is also another step to return return to the rail legacy of our grandparents in Costa Rica.”  Casa Presidencial said the feasibility studies will take about seven months Costa Rica’s Pacific Railroad (Ferrocarril al Pacifico) provided an important link between the capital of San José and Puntarenas one of the country’s most important port cities Work on the line began in 1897 but went only as far as Orotina before financial troubles paralyzed the country as well as the railway the line wasn’t completed until 1910 built in Pennsylvania and named after the granddaughter of former President Rafael Iglesias Costa Rica inaugurated an electric railroad to the Pacific which operated until the 1990s In an effort to remember Costa Rica’s railroad history tourism company AmericaTravel operated the “Tico Train Tour” in the early 2000s from San José to the Pacific Coast the railroad has been in a state of disrepair after budget cuts and damage caused by the construction of Route 27 Costa Rica News – We keep hearing about new airports in Costa Rica but will any of these new international airports become a reality From the looks of it we are looking for a bit of a delay even if they do start construction The Chamber of Tourism met with President Luis Guillermo Solis to request a new airport Another proposal was to make an international airport in Orotina Costa Rica’s Tourism Minister Wilhelm von Breymann expressed that the government understands the importance of tourism being that visitors contribute $2.6 billion a year to the country he has ruled out the idea of a new airport in the country He based this on the fact that Juan Santamaria already has sufficient capacity and is being expanded He also stated that opening a new airport requires a lot of time to carry out wind studies and that he sees Liberia’s Daniel Oduber Airport as a greater priority because there is an urgent need to be able to handle emergencies in San Jose When the Turrialba Volcano erupted and the San Jose Airport was closed it would have been great if there had been enough room for arriving flights and departures in Oduber You must be logged in to post a comment @2017 - Costa Rican Times. 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