The Global Logistics Services Inc. and the National Aviation Services (NAS) have broken ground for the construction of a new 2,700 square meter cargo terminal valued at US$11 million at the Roberts International Airport (RIA).
According to GLS-NAS, the Roberts Air Cargo Center is aimed at improving the RIA’s cargo operations to meet international standards and support export supply capacity in Liberia.
The size of the facility currently fulfills a 14-year forecasted baseline demand and can be further expanded up to 3,553 square meters.
In remarks at the ground breaking ceremony held Thursday, GLS-NAS General manager Axel Coulibaly said the GLS-NAS has been operating at the RIA for over a year, and that during this period the operational improvements helped grow the airport’s cargo handling capacity by almost 60 percent.
The construction of the facility is expected to be completed in April 2020, the GLS-NAS official indicated.
The ceremony was graced by Liberia’s Minister of Transport Samuel Wlue, ECOWAS Special Representative to Liberia Ambassador Babatunde Ajisomo, among others.
“With the new warehouse, we will not only build capacity, but also offer diverse solutions for a variety of industries dealing with perishables, fresh produce, livestock, pharmaceutical and temperature sensitive cargo. We can also handle high value shipments that require special security, all of which will serve to attract more cargo airlines to the airport, while focusing on safety an security,” Coulibaly said.
According to him, the state-of-the-art warehouse will be one of its kind with extended racking for storage, temperature controlled cold storage, walk-in freezers, dangerous goods storage, a vault, mail area and five loading docks that can be extended up to eight. The facility will also house a dedicated area for customs inspections and other government agencies, among others.
Mr. Coulibaly said the GLS-NAS currently operates out of the existing warehouse at RIA, handling nine airlines and over 2200 metric tons of cargo annually.. “Again, our customer base includes Arik Airlines, Kenya Airways, Air Cote d’Ivoire, Brussels Airlines, Royal Air Maroc,, Air Peace, and ground handling for the DHL cargo aircrafts.
According to him, NAS provides ground handling services to seven of the world’s ten leading airlines, has an average on time performance of 98 percent across its operations, is ISAGO,ISO, OHSAS and RA3 certified and has demonstrated expertise in supporting local hub carriers in these countries.
He added that NAS also manages 35 airport lounges and offers expanded portfolio of aviation services that include innovative technology solutions.
TSS/abj/APA