Baku, Azerbaijan, May 18
Trend:
Turkish TAV Urban Georgia (Tepe-Akfen-Ventures), managing international airports in Tbilisi and Batumi, plans to expand the capacity of the Batumi airport for more than twice, reports Trend via Georgia Online.
"By the end of this year, it is envisaged to start work on the expansion of the Batumi airport, negotiations have already begun with the Ministry of Economic Development of Georgia and the Association of Airports of Georgia," said Teya Zakaradze, Deputy General Manager of TAV Urban Georgia.
It is planned to invest $10 million in the project, according to it another passenger terminal will be built at the airport next to the existing terminal, which will allow more than 2 times increase in capacity.
"If at present the airport in Batumi can receive about 600,000 passengers a year, then it will be able to serve up to 1.3 million passengers," said Zakaradze.
Compared to 2017, the passenger traffic at the Batumi International Airport increased by 20.8 percent and amounts to 598,900 people in 2018.
TAV Urban Georgia is a subsidiary of TAV Airports Holding A.S., it has operated the Tbilisi International Airport since November 2005, and it has received control of the Batumi Airport since May 2007. The terms of operating with both airports will expire in 2027, after which, according to the agreements, they will be taken over by Georgia.
During its activity in Georgia, TAV has invested about $200 million in the expansion and modernization of Tbilisi and Batumi airports.
TAV Airports Holding owns Ataturk Airport in Istanbul. The company operates terminals in Latvia, Croatia, Northern Macedonia, Saudi Arabia and Tunisia, and together with its French partner ADP (Aéroports de Paris) operates at 40 airports in the world.