The shortlist includes several of China’s largest state-owned construction companies, reflecting the country’s extensive experience delivering major infrastructure projects across Africa. Chinese contractors have spent decades building railways, roads, power facilities and other large developments in Ethiopia, giving them an established presence in one of the continent’s fastest-changing infrastructure markets.
No major independent American construction contractor made the initial shortlist, although the United States has expressed strong interest in participating in the wider project. Washington has been promoting American companies in areas including aviation technology, airport systems, aircraft and equipment, demonstrating that opportunities surrounding Bishoftu extend well beyond the main construction contracts.
The project has increasingly attracted attention from both China and the United States, reflecting Ethiopia’s growing strategic importance. Rather than depending on a single international partner, Addis Ababa has an opportunity to draw financing, technology and expertise from competing global investors while selecting arrangements that best serve its long-term development priorities.
Ethiopian Airlines has postponed the selection of the main contractors from August 2026 until January 2027, allowing additional time to complete the bidding and evaluation process. The airline has said the delay will not affect the overall construction schedule, with the first phase still targeted for completion in 2030.
Construction formally began in January on a site about 45 kilometers southeast of Addis Ababa. The first phase is designed to accommodate 60 million passengers annually, before capacity eventually expands to as many as 110 million passengers a year. The development will include four runways and space for hundreds of aircraft, creating an aviation complex on a scale not previously seen on the continent.
The airport is intended to relieve pressure on Addis Ababa Bole International Airport, the home base of Ethiopian Airlines. Continued expansion by the carrier is expected to push the existing airport toward its capacity limits, making Bishoftu central to the airline’s ability to sustain growth over the coming decades.
Ethiopian Airlines plans to finance about 30 percent of the project itself, leaving more than $9 billion to be raised from external lenders and investors. The African Development Bank is playing a central role in mobilizing financing, while institutions from China, the United States, Europe and the Middle East have shown interest in participating. No final financing agreements covering the entire external requirement have yet been announced.
The scale of international interest gives Ethiopia considerable room to build a diversified financing structure. Competition among lenders and contractors could potentially help the country secure favorable financing, advanced technology and stronger commercial partnerships while limiting its dependence on any single source of capital.
Bishoftu is also designed to become far more than an airport. Plans envision a wider Airport City incorporating hotels, commercial facilities, maintenance operations and industrial development. Together, these investments could create jobs, stimulate tourism and logistics, and encourage multinational businesses to establish operations around one of Africa’s most important emerging transportation hubs.
The development is closely tied to the success of Ethiopian Airlines, which has built one of the continent’s largest international networks and turned Addis Ababa into a major connecting point for African aviation. A much larger hub would give the carrier the capacity to add routes and passengers while strengthening Ethiopia’s position in the global aviation industry.
The competition surrounding Bishoftu ultimately demonstrates how Africa’s largest infrastructure projects are attracting increasingly diverse international interest. Chinese companies may currently dominate the construction shortlist, but American, European, Middle Eastern and other investors continue to pursue opportunities connected to the development.
For Ethiopia, that competition could become an advantage. By drawing capital and expertise from multiple global partners while retaining control over its development priorities, the country has an opportunity to turn Bishoftu into more than Africa’s largest airport. It could become a cornerstone of Ethiopia’s long-term strategy to establish itself as one of the world’s most important aviation and logistics gateways.
