Queen Alia Project In May 2007, the Government of Jordan (GoJ) awarded to a consortium including the international airport operator, Aéroport de Paris Management and the international construction firm, J&P Overseas a 25-year concession for the expansion, rehabilitation and operation of the Queen Alia International Airport (QAIA or the Airport) of Amman.  The consortium constituted Airport International Group P.S.C (AIG), a special purpose company which will act as the concessionaire.  The concession agreement grants AIG the exclusive right and obligation to provide airport services at QAIA and charge tariffs for these services.  Such services include the obligation for AIG to operate, maintain and rehabilitate the existing Airports landside and airside facilities; complete the design for, engineer, procure, finance and build a new passenger terminal; and submit and implement a plan to demolish the existing terminal at QAIA once the new terminal is fully operating.  AIG has requested both IFC and the Islamic Development Bank (IDB) to provide financing to the project, which is expected to cost $680 million and includes the rehabilitation of the existing terminal, the construction of the new terminal including related aprons and external works, and the demolition of the existing building. The construction of the new terminal is expected to be completed in July 2011.  The project would be financed by a combination of internal cash flow generation ($134 million), equity ($161 million), senior debt ($347 million) and a subordinated loan ($40 million).  The senior debt would be provided by IFC and Islamic Development Bank (IDB).  The subordinated loan would be provided by IFC. The proposed project is a major investment for the Middle East region and the largest infrastructure investment to date in the Kingdom of Jordan. It is intended to address the constraints on public resources available to support the airport expansion in line with capacity needs, and free public resources to other sectors such as social sectors, and as such, enjoys strong Government support.  Additionally, QAIA is the main international airport of the country and its expansion is critical to support the tourism industry, which is of vital importance for the Kingdoms national economy, as it contributes to approximately 10% of the countrys GDP, is the largest export sector and the second largest private sector employer.  Finally, the airport expansion will support the significant growth in foreign trade (imports have increased by an average of 15.4% per year since 2000, exports have increased by 20.9% on average over the same period).  The economic benefits of the project are based on the incremental traffic flow that will be enabled by the expanded capacity at QAIA, and will accrue to the GoJ through the generation of additional royalties via the payment of a concession fee; the customers of the airport including carriers, shipping companies, cargo owners, business and pleasure passengers; and the airports employees.  Significant benefits of the project include the increased level of service at the airport, the expected increase in the skills of the workforce and related salary increases.  It is also expected that the Project will facilitate the arrival of more travelers to Jordan, hence helping the tourism and hotel industry.