Nexans wins an airfield lighting cable contract for King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah

Almabani is the general contractor for the current airfield facilities upgrade project at KAIA that forms part of a major redevelopment of the airport to expand its capacity to 80m passengers per year - including the capability to handle the new Airbus A380 Superjumbo aircraft.

The Nexans contract includes the supply of some 1,500 km of 5 kV easy-to-install and watertight primary cables to connect the airfield power network to the lighting transformers located on the runways that power the airfield lights.

"Almabani awarded this contract to Nexans because we offered a well proven, high -specification products, bringing safety thanks to advanced fire behavior cables as well as enhancing security and efficiency of these airport infrastructures, at a competitive price. Another key factor was our established track record in airfield projects worldwide, where we continue to demonstrate excellent factory service, extensive local support and strong relationship."

said Paolo Pieri, Airport Infrastructure Business Segment Manager of Nexans.

The cable for KAIA are manufactured at Nexans' plant based in Lyon, France. Delivery have started in 2008 and still continue in 2009.

KAIA's capacity is planned to reach 80m passengers per year

King Abdulaziz Airport is the gateway to Saudi Arabia for a large number of pilgrims. The airport is close to the cities of Mecca and Medina, two of the holiest sites in Islam. During the 2005 Hajj (pilgrimage) season it received 3.5m travelers and around 2m pilgrims.

The redevelopment will take place in three stages, the first of which should be completed by the first quarter of 2011. After the completion of all the three construction stages, the airport's capacity is planned to reach 80m passengers per year.

At the end of the first stage the airport's capacity is to increase initially from 13m passengers to reach 30m passengers each year. The expansion of the airport includes the construction of support services building, renovation of the existing South and North Terminals and upgrades to the existing runway and airfield systems to accommodate the Airbus A380.