Chetumal Airport Customs Nears Full Operation Next Year

CHETUMAL — Despite the announcement that the customs section at Chetumal International Airport will come into effect once its creation is published in the Official Gazette of the Federation, allowing the entry and exit of import and export goods by air, the Ministry of Economic Development announced that it will not be fully operational until next year, before the end of the current administration.

The head of the agency, Paul Carrillo, indicated that with the installation of the company Zenith Aeronáutica, which already has activities at the airport terminal, it will be one of the first to take advantage of the benefits of the decree and more, because it is in the process of building a cargo hangar to begin receiving and sending import and export items from the national territory with the approval of customs.

“The company Zenith has already signed an agreement with a significant investment in its final stage. They are currently established at the airport, operating there, and have hired young people from the Chetumal Technological Institute. They are in their first phase of building a hangar at the airport with the intention of starting to handle cargo and transport it to Cuba and the Caribbean islands. With the announcement regarding customs, the most important thing is that the announcement was made, and the construction of the hangar is coming. Although it is not yet a certainty, I can guarantee that this terminal, this customs section, will be completed before the end of the current five-year term.”

He highlighted that the budget Zenith will allocate to build its hangar is around $24 million, although they will later move to the Development Hub. He estimated that an agreement could be reached with the executives for the facilities to be used temporarily and to design an air logistics, customs, and tax platform in the state capital, so they are working to attract more investors.

“The customs section would even complement the transport activities through the Freight Train, which is still under construction, and there are several possibilities for the decree to be used. Therefore, we are working jointly with Governor Mara Lezama to attract more companies interested in import and export operations.”

He explained that in this way, the economic development strategy would be articulated with the Freight Train, the Free Zone, the Strategic Fiscal Enclosure and the Development Hub for Well-being, which was proposed from the beginning by the Federal Ministry of Economy and with which it is sought to increase commercial activity and greater air connectivity with Central America and the Caribbean, to generate new sources of employment and opportunities for Quintana Roo families.