Fico: Bratislava Airport and Transport Ministry to Submit Development Strategy-2

Bratislava, 3 July (TASR) - Prime Minister Robert Fico (Smer-SD) told a press conference on Friday that he's officially asked M.R. Stefanik Airport in Bratislava and the Transport Ministry to submit a strategy for the airport's further development in light of its economic growth and rising passenger numbers. Transport Minister Jozef Raz (a Smer-SD nominee) and Bratislava Airport's general director Dusan Novota also attended the press conference. According to Fico, the strategy should be submitted to a government meeting in August or September. "What I'm primarily referring to is the expansion of the terminal. This is a must, because when we built this terminal, we knew that there was room to continue construction in the same vein," said Fico. The total cost of expanding the airport or building a new terminal, including aircraft stands, as made necessary by a surge in passenger numbers, has been estimated at €50 million, with the airport planning to take out a loan. "I suppose that we could classify such an investment as a strategic one again, thus speeding up the processes if necessary, but we're standing on state-owned land. After all, this is state property, so there shouldn't be any problems," said Fico. He confirmed continued interest in developing the airport under full ownership of the state, without contemplating any privatisation, as he doesn't believe in privatising strategic enterprises and assets. Fico expects banks to be interested in cooperating with the airport due to its positive economic results over the past two years. "The new terminal, the expansion of the terminal, and the stands can be financed by the airport from a standard commercial loan. Its financial condition is clearly excellent, and in this case we're capable of handling such construction projects by standard commercial means," said Fico, who expects Raz and Novota to prepare the initial visualisations and schedule. "As long as you are ready, we'll be ready to approve this project so that you have the necessary support," added Fico. Transport Minister Raz said that the state expects to support the regular Bratislava-Kosice route operated by Wizz Air to the tune of €1.2 million annually. "It's very positive that those flights are so full that the invoice we received for this support is less than half of this amount," he noted. Raz also announced the preparation of a feasibility study for an additional terminal. "This is no longer a small regional airport at which arriving 45 minutes before departure will suffice," he said, urging passengers to arrive at least two hours before departure if they want to avoid standing in a queue for check-in, which is completely normal at other airports. Novota confirmed that the airport will handle its two-millionth traveller this year on Friday, while the total for the whole of last year stood at 2.4 million. He expects the number of passengers to exceed 4 million this year. "Delays are being caused by the enormous number of people. Bratislava airport has never experienced this before," he said, adding that it's essential for the airport to gather all feedback and subsequently identify the bottlenecks in passenger handling. NOTE: This story has been extended to include the final four paragraphs. jrg/df