Not trying to collect additional $1.5 million: GMR

GMR has said today that it has not requested Maldives Airports Company Limited (MACL) to pay the additional $1.5 million, arising from the amount deducted from the concession fee being greater than the concession fee payable by GMR to the government.

According to GMR’s statements, GMR was required to pay the government $5.6 million as concession fee for the past three months.

However, had they been able to collect Airport Development Charge (ADC) and Insurance form every passenger, which allegedly can be deducted from the amount payable to the government, the concession fee payable to the government ends up at $7.1 million.

Hence, while the government failed to receive any money from GMR for the past three months, it is required to pay them the difference of $1.5 million.

GMR’s Male’ Airport CEO Andrew Harrison said today that even though this amount is shown in the books as due to GMR by MACL, MACL was never asked to pay this sum.

He added that GMR wants to solve the issue as soon as possible through dialogue.

He also pointed out that the solution to the problem of ADC is to implement one of the two ideas earlier proposed by GMR.

GMR’s propositions are to either charge ADC on all foreign passport holders but not Maldivian passport holders; or to charge ADC on foreign passport holders traveling to SAARC countries but not Maldivian passport holders traveling to SAARC countries.

Despite GMR being required to pay $8.7 million to MACL as concession fee for the past three months, they only paid $525,355.

MACL, since its Board of Directors was reformed, has repeatedly informed GMR of the annulment of the former Board’s decision to deduct ADC and insurance from the concession fee.

GMR was allowed to deduct ADC and insurance from concession fee, following a Civil Court order which proscribed GMR to charge these fees on passengers, through a letter endorsed by former Chairman of MACL Bandhu Ibrahim Saleem.

This permission was given without the Board’s consent.

MACL has also filed the case of Saleem’s letter to GMR, to Civil Court.