Investments in Growth of Greek Airports Rising

Tourism in Greece is booming, and air visitors is following go well with. In 2024, the nation achieved its second consecutive report for vacationer arrivals, welcoming practically 40 million guests.

Preliminary estimates point out that air visitors at Greek airports in 2024 surged 18 % in comparison with the pre-crisis 12 months 2019. Athens Airport, the most important within the nation, skilled a 13 % enhance in passenger numbers throughout the first eleven months of 2024 in comparison with the identical interval within the earlier 12 months.

Tourism is a vital pillar of the Greek financial system, accounting for roughly one-fifth of the nation’s gross home product and employment. Greece is closely investing in airport infrastructure to accommodate this progress, as many amenities are already working at full capability.

New Main Airport beneath Building in Crete

For instance, Nikos Kazantzakis Airport in Heraklion (Crete) is overloaded, dealing with practically ten million passengers yearly. To handle this subject, a brand new airport is being constructed close to Kastelli, situated 17 kilometers south of town. The mission is being carried out by the Ariadne Airport Group consortium, which incorporates the Greek building agency GEK Terna and the Indian airport operator GMR Airports. This consortium holds 54.1 % of the airport firm, whereas the Greek state owns the remaining 45.9 %. Building is underway, and the primary plane will land on the new airport in 2027. The Ariadne Group will handle the airport for at the very least the following 32 years.

Equally, Athens Airport can be approaching its capability limits, presently accommodating 31 million passengers. To reinforce its amenities, the airport firm plans to take a position roughly 650 million euros in a phased enlargement of terminal capacities to assist 40 million passengers. This plan consists of the development of a brand new eight-level parking storage, an extension of the apron, and extra parking areas for 34 plane.

German Fraport Invests Tens of millions in Greek Airports

Fraport AG, a German firm, has operated 14 regional airports in Greece since 2017. This portfolio consists of the airport in Thessaloniki, Greece’s second-largest metropolis, and airports on well-liked vacationer islands corresponding to Rhodes, Mykonos, Kos, Santorini, and Corfu.

Whereas Fraport’s house airport in Frankfurt skilled a 14 % lower in passenger numbers within the first 9 months of 2024 in comparison with 2019, the state of affairs in Greece was fairly totally different. Passenger numbers at Fraport-managed airports rose by 6.4 % from the start of January to the top of November.

Fraport is making important investments in Greece. Since 2017, the group has invested over 600 million euros in modernizing and increasing its Greek airports. Within the subsequent 5 years, Fraport Greece plans to take a position 200 million euros extra to boost the airports’ capacities in Santorini, Mykonos, Kos, and Corfu.

Kalamata Airport to Prolong the Group

Moreover, a fifteenth airport will probably be added to their portfolio. In early December, Fraport Greece, in partnership with two Greek corporations, was awarded the working concession for Kalamata Airport. Kalamata is situated within the southern Peloponnese peninsula, a quickly creating tourism space. The consortium can pay 45.2 million euros for the 40-year working rights and plans to take a position an additional 28.3 million euros within the modernization and enlargement of the airport.

In the meantime, the sovereign wealth fund is getting ready to award working concessions for the remaining 22 Greek airports, that are smaller regional airports presently managed by the federal government. A few of these airports, corresponding to these on the islands of Paros, Syros, Naxos, Milos, and Chios, have important vacationer potential. As extra guests search to keep away from overcrowded locations, Greece is witnessing a rising curiosity in beforehand under-visited vacation areas.

The tender course of for these concessions will probably be awarded as a single package deal to 1 operator within the coming months. The objective is to switch the administration of the airports to the brand new operator earlier than the top of the 12 months, thereby privatizing all 38 business airports in Greece.