The MGA is located on the opposite side of Lake Managua, Punta Huete, and is the only airport in the country with international air traffic.
According to CAPA (Centre for Aviation) and OAG data for the week commencing August 26, 2024, the airport currently handles international flights from Fort Lauderdale, Houston and Miami in the United States, as well as from San Salvador (El Salvador), San Jose (Costa Rica), Panama City (Panama), Mexico City (Mexico) and Guatemala City (Guatemala).
While this network includes many of the usual suspects from the region, it also highlights the limited reach of international connections to the country: there are no services whatsoever from South America or most of North America, let alone the rest of the world.
This restriction on tourism and trade is undoubtedly an important motivation for the Punta Huete airport project and also for China CAMC Engineering’s involvement in it.
Chinese interests were previously involved in projects in the Maldives and Nepal
Airport expansion projects are not uncommon for the company: it recently signed a letter of intent to develop the Maldivian Kadhdhoo Airport into an international facility and was previously involved in major construction work at Pokhara International Airport in Nepal.
However, the Punta Huete airport project, which is part of China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), is a venture into geographically unknown territory.
The appeal of Chinese involvement from Nicaragua’s perspective is clear. Aside from the fact that the project would not be feasible without the financing credit agreement between the parties, the government’s stated goal of turning the airport into a hub for global trade can only benefit from Chinese involvement.
For China, the project represents an opportunity to add the airport expansion to its growing portfolio of infrastructure projects in Latin America. According to the Council on Foreign Relations, 21 countries in the region will have joined the BRI by 2023.
The Punta Huete airport project is scheduled to be completed in August 2029
The project is not expected to be completed before August 2029, at which time the airport will have a capacity of 3.5 million passengers per year. This will reduce pressure on Managua Augusto Cesar Sandino Airport and expand Nicaragua’s international air connections, with a focus on both tourism and trade.
The “brotherhood between the Sandinista National Liberation Front and the Chinese Communist Party,” as described in the government announcement of the project, is a result of the resumption of diplomatic relations between Nicaragua and China in December 2021.
The brothers have now joined forces to realise an ambitious airport project which, if successfully implemented, should bring benefits to both sides.
