The government of Kenya will soon begin conversion of Lanet military airstrip into an International Public Airport (Nakuru Airport) after closure of the bid submission process which began in June 2020.
The bids for construction of the airport will now be reviewed at the Kenya Airport Authority (KAA) headquarters in Nairobi to determine which bidder will be awarded the contract.
The Nakuru Airport project is fully funded by the national government of the Republic of Kenya at a tune of over USD 27 million. The project will be implemented in two phases.
The initial phase will entail construction of 1.7 km runway, rehabilitation of the current runway to bitumen standards, erection of a fence, and construction of taxiways.
It will also involve construction of a terminal building and a military lounge, construction of air rescue and firefighting building as well as military and civilian gates.
A power substation and a patrol road will also be constructed in Phase-I.
Phase-II will mainly be the extension of Phase-I to allow the airport to accommodate much larger aircraft and might include compensation of neighbouring residents whose land may be acquired for the project.
Upon completion, the project is expected to accommodate bigger cargo and passenger planes of approximately 40 to 100 tonne.
This will subsequently present flower farmers in Naivasha with a chance to exploit the huge market available by increasing their exports to Europe and the United States.
Due to its closeness to the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) in Nairobi, the Nakuru airport will also serve flights that are normally redirected to Mombasa, Kisumu, and Eldoret during emergencies.