A memorandum of understanding (MoU) has been signed for the development of an aeronautical maintenance center in Senegal.
The MoU was signed last month by Ibrahima Kane, the general manager of Air Senegal, which is the new national airline and flag-carrier for Senegal, and Doudou Ka, the general manager of Blaise Diagne International Airport (AIBD), the main airport for Dakar located near the town of Diass in Thiès Region, Senegal, approximately 43 kilometers east of downtown Dakar.
What the two parties have agreed on
The MoU will serve as a framework for partnership and cooperation between the two Senegalese companies for the realization of this major project which is a part of the development of the Dakar air hub. The two entities have agreed to use their know-how, the necessary resources, and means, as well as qualified personnel to facilitate its implementation.
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The aeronautical maintenance center will be based at Blaise Diagne airport and it will have to meet national, sub-regional, and international needs in terms of aircraft maintenance according to a joint statement.
“To strengthen the air hub, it is necessary to build quality ancillary infrastructures, that is why the two companies intend to give the aeronautical maintenance center all the meaning and all the attention it deserves,” read the statement in part.
The cost of the project is estimated at over US$ 103m.
Composition of the future facility
The Senegalese Minister of Tourism and Air Transport, Alioune Sarr explained sometime last year that the future aeronautical maintenance center will have maintenance spaces for A330 and other types of aircraft, offices, workshops, and storage warehouses, and a training center.
This infrastructure will therefore complement the three main components of the Dakar air hub, which intends to become a major on the African continent. The components include Dakar Blaise Diagne airport, the Senegal Airports Reconstruction Program (PRAS), and the national company Air Senegal.
