The Uttar Pradesh government on Wednesday signed a concession agreement with representatives of Zurich Airport International to develop the green field Noida International Airport at Jewar in the National Capital Region.

The “concession agreement” for the airport, estimated to cost Rs 29,560 crore, was signed between the Uttar Pradesh government’s agency and Yamuna International Airport Private Limited, a special purpose vehicle floated by Zurich Airport for the project.

The agreement grants Zurich Airport International the licence to design, build and operate Noida International Airport for 40 years.

The airport will be developed under the public private partnership (PPP) mode and will operate as a fully digital airport. The airport will be the first net zero-emissions airport in its class.

On November 29 last year, Zurich Airport had emerged as the highest bidder to develop the Jewar airport, outbidding competitors such as Adani Enterprises, DIAL and Anchorage Infrastructure Investments Holding.

Daniel Bircher, chief executive officer of Zurich Airport International (Asia), said: “When phase 1 development is completed in 2024, we will provide capacity for 12 million passengers per year. Construction will start in 2021, while operations are expected to begin in 2024.”

“The airport will initially have one runway and 90 per cent of the traffic in these years will be domestic,” he added.

“We are expecting 12 million to 16 million passengers annually at the Jewar airport,” said Arun Vir Singh, a board member of NIAL.

NIAL officials have earlier stated that the airport in Gautam Buddh Nagar district in western Uttar Pradesh will be spread over an area of 5,000 hectare and is billed to be the biggest in India with six runways upon completion. The first phase of the project will be spread over an area of 1,334 hectare and is expected to cost Rs 4,588 crore, the officials said.