(Bloomberg) -- Corporacion America Airports SA, one of the world’s largest airport operators, expressed an interest in investing in Kenyan airfields three months ago and has yet to receive a response from the authorities.
The Buenos Aires-based company submitted a presentation letter to then Transport Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen in mid-June, it said in an emailed response to questions.
“So far, we haven’t had any response from Kenya’s government to that letter of presentation,” it said.
CAAP’s interest adds to a private bid by Indian billionaire Gautam Adani’s to take over Kenya’s main airport in the capital, Nairobi, and run it for 30 years.
The Adani plan was suspended by a Kenyan court last month after opponents argued it breached constitutional principles of good governance, transparency and responsible use of public money. The Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project in July questioned why the Kenyan authorities are considering a private proposal after experts advised the government earlier this year to put out a public tender for the project.
Kenyan lawmaker Richard Onyonka has argued that there were other investors seeking to invest in Kenya’s airports, including CAAP. Current Transport Secretary Davis Chirchir last week told lawmakers that the nation had only received one proposal to develop Jomo Kenyatta International Airport in Nairobi — the one submitted by Adani.
Both the transport ministry and the airports agency weren’t immediately available for comment.
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