The claim of Kalamata airport “Captain Vassilis Konstantakopoulos” is developing into a dogfight, as the high investment interest shown for its concession for 40 years, forced the Superfund to extend the deadline for the official submission of interest in the relevant tender. Somehow, the “air battle” continues, as instead of November 30, the relevant date was moved to December 15. There, we will see who will participate.
The extension to the declaration of initial interest procedure for Kalamata airport was given for two main reasons. First, prospective investors requested an extension, in order to collect the necessary legalization and technical documents. Secondly, however, it appears that there are other investors who are considering their participation in the tender process and are not yet ready to assess the situation and make a decision whether to participate.
Today, interested parties include the joint venture of GEK TERNA with the Indian GMR, who want to expand their presence in the Greek aviation market. The two groups have experience in such projects, as they have jointly undertaken the construction and management of the new airport in Kasteli, Crete.
However, business sources insist that TEMES of the Konstantakopoulos group, which operates the Costa Navarino complex in Messinia, is also interested in the development of the airport. The same sources state that it is possible to see the participation of TEMES with AEGEAN in the competition. After all, apart from the direct investment interest of the airport for the Konstantakopoulos Group, there is also the emotional part, as the Kalamata airport bears – rightly – the name of the man who envisioned the transformation of the area into a global tourist destination, Captain Vassilis Konstantakopoulos , father of the current head of the group, Achilleas Konstantakopoulos.
However, Fraport is expected to play a regulatory role. So far there is mixed information, as FraportGreece’s parent company, the German Fraport AG, is reportedly evaluating its participation in the tender, as Fraport-Greece is bound by the concession contract of the 14 regional airports and cannot participate in another airport’s concession tender.
The Superfund reserves the right to participate in the share capital of the concessionaire with a minority participation rate, which will not exceed 15%.
According to the data of the Civil Aviation Service, in the 10th month “Captain Vassilis Konstantakopoulos” airport in terms of arrivals from abroad this year exceeded the total numbers of the last year before the disruption of the pandemic, 2019. To be precise, in the period January – October 2022, international arrivals at the airport exceeded 153,000, compared to 152,000 for the whole of 2019.
The investors to whom the airport will be granted will upgrade and modernize it, which is absolutely necessary due to the rapid growth of the said airport. Through these investments, Kalamata airport will be able to welcome an ever-increasing number of passengers, estimated to reach 500,000 much earlier than the end of the current decade. It is recalled that for the Kalamata airport there is an agreement with an Israeli group for the operation of an international center for flight training and pilot training of the Air Force.
