A regional construction firm has won the contract to build a new passenger terminal at Hewanorra International Airport, the main gateway for long-haul flights to St Lucia, in a deal worth US$243 million, or EC$666 million. Trinidad and Tobago contractor NH International (Caribbean) signed the agreement with the St Lucia Air and Sea Ports Authority on October 20 at a ceremony in Castries.
As reported by Trinidad Guardian, the contract covers construction of a 274,000-square-foot, three-storey terminal built as an extension of the existing facility, along with associated airside infrastructure such as aircraft aprons, drainage and floodlighting. Completion is targeted for late 2029.
The new building will have five contact gates with passenger boarding bridges, an additional aircraft parking position and provision to expand to eight gates in future. Passengers can expect expanded departure lounges, larger immigration and customs facilities, upgraded baggage handling, restaurants, duty-free shopping and premium lounges. The existing terminal will stay open throughout construction, so arrivals will not face disruption while the work is under way.
Prime Minister Philip J Pierre welcomed the award at the signing, where he was joined by Infrastructure Minister Shawn Edwards, SLASPA chairman Francis Fontenelle, SLASPA general manager Darren Cenac and NH International's executive chairman Emile Elias and chief executive Ciaran Conlon. "We have full confidence in the process that's got us where we are," Pierre said, adding that he had full confidence in the capacity of the contractor. He also highlighted the opportunities the project could create for young Saint Lucian workers and other Caricom nationals.
The contract followed a competitive tender in which 27 firms expressed interest and seven submitted proposals, with NH emerging as the best-evaluated bidder after technical and financial assessments overseen by independent professionals. Elias pledged to maximise the use of Saint Lucian contractors, suppliers, labour and materials wherever possible. "We will maximise the use of St Lucian resources to the fullest extent possible," he said.
For Elias, the award is a homecoming of sorts. His company built Hewanorra's existing terminal 32 years ago, and he recalled the firm's long connection with the airport, saying he felt very much at home in Saint Lucia. He thanked the prime minister and cabinet for their belief in Caricom, which he said unites the Caribbean people, and described the award as evidence that regional companies can compete against international firms on complex infrastructure projects.
The expansion matters well beyond the construction site. Hewanorra is the island's principal airport for long-haul international travel, and the number of flights to St Lucia from Europe and North America has grown as demand for Caribbean holidays rises. Once complete, the new terminal is expected to ease congestion, resolve shortfalls in aircraft parking and allow the airport to accommodate larger planes, strengthening connectivity for the tourism-dependent economy of Saint Lucia.
That has a direct bearing on anyone booking holidays to St Lucia. The island's hotels in St Lucia range from small clifftop retreats to large beachfront estates, and all-inclusive resorts in St Lucia along the northwest coast depend on a steady flow of long-haul arrivals. A bigger terminal with faster immigration and baggage handling should make the journey smoother, particularly in the high season, which runs from December to April and is generally regarded as the best time to visit St Lucia.
The project is one of three NH International is currently delivering on the island, alongside the Halls of Justice in Castries, a Build Own Lease Transfer scheme worth about US$61 million that is expected to be finished by mid-2027. The company has now worked in 11 Caribbean countries and delivered more than US$1 billion of construction, and Elias said NH would continue to pursue its regional expansion plans, with the economy of Saint Lucia seen as a growing market for the firm.
The award also carries political weight back in Trinidad and Tobago, where construction firms have raised concerns about delayed payments and the slow roll-out of government projects. Elias praised Saint Lucia's procurement framework as robust but said he was extremely disappointed that the government of Trinidad and Tobago had found it necessary to weaken the country's procurement laws. He said he expected the Joint Consultative Council for the Construction Industry to keep advocating for a stronger Office of Procurement Regulation.
Elias noted that the construction cost of the new Hewanorra terminal works out at about US$509 per square foot, a figure that compares with the roughly US$557 per square foot, or US$6,000 per square metre, cited by Trinidad and Tobago's former finance minister Colm Imbert for the terminal at the ANR Robinson International Airport in Tobago, which was built by China Railway Construction Corporation.
Founded by Elias 61 years ago, NH International is a seven-time winner of the Trinidad and Tobago Contractors Association's Contractor of the Year award and has completed more than 100 projects across the region. Work on the terminal extension now begins at Vieux Fort, with the new building due to welcome its first passengers in late 2029.
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