Turkey has announced plans to build the world’s largest airport in Istanbul with an estimated capacity of around 150 million passengers once the project is completed. Tenders for the €7bn project will be released on 3 May and the project will be contracted using the Build-Operate-Transfer model.

The Transport minister, Binali Yildirim, said: “Interested firms can start doing their math on the project and decide if they want to apply on May 3 when the tender closes.” The project will be completed in two stages with the first stage of the development finishing approximately 42 months after the tender date, with a capacity of 90 million passengers.

Reports suggest that various companies, including French airport operator Aeroports de Paris, Dutch airport operator Schiphol Group and Turkish TAV Airports, are interested in bidding for the project. Binali Yildrim commented: “The winning bidder will have the right to operate the project for 25 years.”

The proposed airport will make it the third in the Turkish city after it was reported that Aturuk International Airport is running at full capacity, serving 45 million passengers a year.