Adani Airport Holdings was not the only foreign conglomerate that sent in a proposal to lease and manage the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport.

This is contrary to claims that have been previously made by government officials that Adani’s controversial JKIA lease proposal was the only one that the government had received and as a result was the only one being considered.

Apparently, it has emerged that a second proposal was sent to the government through the Ministry of Transport by an Argentinian conglomerate.

However, this proposal was not considered, and instead the government choose to force Adani’s proposal in a manner that reportedly caused friction among boards members at the Kenya Airports Authority (KAA).

The second proposal by Argentinian firm Corporacion America Airports SA, which is one of the world’s largest airport operators, was submitted to form Transport Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen in mid-June 2024. Nearly four months later, Corporacion America Airports SA is yet to get a response from the government.

This proposal was sent in when the current Cabinet Secretary for Youth and Sports Kipchumba Murkomen was in charge of the Ministry of Transport. It was also during Murkomen’s tenure that the Adani proposal was filed and approved.

In a turn of events that has left many Kenyans puzzled, Adani also filed a proposal for a multi-billion deal in the energy sector. This proposal, which was filed under the public private partnership (PPP), was done when Davis Chirchir was the Cabinet Secretary in charge of Energy.

Mr. Chirchir is now the Cabinet Secretary for Transport, the ministry that is directly involved with the controversial takeover bid that has been pitched by Adani.

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Unlike the proposal by Argentinian firm Corporacion America Airports SA that is yet to be considered four months after submission, court documents have revealed that the Adani’s proposal was pushed through critical stages in breakneck speed.

“In March 2024, [Adani Airport Holdings] originated a PIP dated March 1, 2024 and sent the same to the KAA. The KAA issued a letter dated March 18, 2024 confirming that the PIP had been received and cleared the project to the project development phase, that is, feasibility study phase,” Alok Patni, the head of Business Development at Adani Airports said in a response that has been filed at the High Court of Kenya.

Barely ten days later, Adani presented a complete feasibility study to the KAA on how it would “upgrade” the JKIA.