A pre-feasibility study has commenced for the proposed greenfield airport near the upcoming Vadhavan Port in Maharashtra’s Palghar district.

The Maharashtra Airport Development Company (MADC) said the study will examine site conditions, traffic forecasts, environmental aspects, and overall project viability. It will also assess integration with major infrastructure, including the Dedicated Freight Corridor and improved road links to the port. The six-to-nine-month study will be carried out by a joint venture between Grant Thornton and Nippon Koei India.

The airport is intended to complement the deep-draft, all-weather Vadhavan Port terminal, located on the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC). Once operational, the port is expected to boost India’s container handling capacity by about 23.2 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs).

Planned as a multimodal logistics hub, the project aims to connect rail, road, and air transport, easing congestion in existing networks and improving access to industrial zones such as Bhiwandi and warehousing hubs in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region. The final report will guide the government’s decision on preparing a detailed project report and seeking approvals.