Name and Location
St Helena Airport development.

Client
British government’s Department for International Development (DFID).

Project Description
St Helena Island is located about 1 900 km from Africa, measuring 16 km by 8 km, and is one of the world’s most remote locations, with Ascension Island more than 1 000 km away.

The project involves the construction of an airport on the island. It will feature a 1 950 m high-quality concrete runway, with taxiways and an apron to cater for aircraft up to the size of an Airbus A320 and a Boeing 737-800; a rockfill embankment of about eight-million cubic metres, through which a 750-m-long reinforced concrete culvert will run; a 3 500 m² airport terminal building and support infrastructure; air-traffic control systems; a bulk fuel installation for six-million litres of diesel and aviation fuel; a 14 km airport access road; and all related logistics.

The island’s only lifeline to the outside world has been the Royal Mail Ship, the RMS St Helena, which calls regularly at St Helena Island. As a community that has no internal resources or an industry to support its economy, the British government has been providing extensive financial support for the island.

The bulk of the capital is spent on maintaining and operating the RMS St Helena. It is hoped that the new airport will address some of the socioeconomic difficulties on the island, boost the prosperity of islanders through tourism and help stop the exodus of its inhabitants who are seeking work in Britain.

To assist in the completion of St Helena International Airport, Basil Read has chartered a massive Thai cargo vessel, the NP Glory 4 from NP Marine for 36 months to transport fuel, materials and plant to and from the island.

Value
The project, funded by the DFID, was valued at £250-million, but the total value of the St Helena Airport project for phases 1 and 2 has increased to about £265-million.

Duration
Once the projected construction of the first phase of the airport is completed in February 2016, the travel time from Cape Town to St Helena will be shaved down from seven days, or 168 hours, to a mere five hours. After construction, the operations phase of the contract will continue in partnership with South Africa’s Lanseria Airport for a further ten years.

Latest Developments
Basil Read has been awarded two contracts for additional work on the St Helena Airport project.

The first contract, valued at R244-million, will entail the design and construction of a permanent wharf in Rupert’s Bay, which will be part of the overall airport project.

The second contract will entail the construction of the Horsepoint landfill site, with the contract valued at R14-million.

The additional works will be carried out within the existing contract period and are expected to be completed by early 2015.

Basil Read was awarded the contract in 2011 to design, build and operate the airport.

The additional contracts, along with some additional variations, will bring the total value of the St Helena Airport project to about £265-million for phases 1 and 2.

Key Contracts and Suppliers
Basil Read (designer, builder and operator), Worley Parsons (lead design and landside designs), Virtual Consulting (airside designs), KMH Architects and LYT Architects (architects); Atkins and WSP (independent certifiers); PRDW (marine designs); Lanseria Airport International (operations); Thales (AGL, Navaids); Southern African Institute for Environmental Assessment or SAIEA (environmental); Trotech (bulk fuel installation; BME (explosives); Ohorongo Cement (cement) and Babcock (supply and maintenance of Volvo construction equipment).

On Budget and on Time?
Too early to state.

Contact Details for Project Information
Basil Read project director Jimmy Johnston, tel +27 11 418 6325 or communications manager Jenny Smith, tel +27 11 418 6466.
Babcock, tel +27 11 230 7300.
DFID, tel +44 1355 84 3132, fax +44 1355 84 4099 or email enquiry@dfid.gov.uk.
Worley Parsons, tel +27 12 745 2000 or fax +27 12 745 2001.
Virtual Consulting, tel +27 12 452 0444 or fax +27 12 452 0583.
KMH Architects, tel +27 11 447 4190, fax +27 11 447 2712 or email arch@kmh.co.za.
LYT Architects, email info@lyt.co.za.
WSP, tel +27 11 361 1300.
PRDW, tel +27 21 418 3830, fax +27 21 418 3834 or email info@prdw.co.za.
Lanseria Airport International, tel +27 11 367 0300.
SAIEA, tel +27 21 789 0251 or fax +27 21 789 0257.
Trotech, tel +27 31 764 1573 or fax +27 31 764 3353.
Ohorongo Cement, tel +264 61 248 485 or fax +264 61 247 878.