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Lending wings to Albania’s economy
EBRD finances modernisation of Tirana Airport
The EBRD is lending €21 million to Tirana Airport Partners Sh.p.k., a
consortium led by Germany’s Hochtief AirPort GmbH, concessionaire of the
“Mother Teresa” International Airport, to modernise the airport. The project
includes construction of a new passenger terminal, cargo centre, other
ancillary facilities and a new access road.
The EBRD’s financing package includes a €12 million loan for the modernisation
of the airport and a €9 million sovereign-guaranteed loan for construction of
a new access road from the capital to the airport and improvements in the
existing access road towards the south of the country. An additional €12.9
million loan will be provided by DEG-Deutsche Investitions- und
Entwicklungsgesellschaft mbH, Alpha Bank A.E. Tirana Branch, and the American
Bank of Albania.
In 2003 the government of Albania launched an international tender for a
20-year concession to run Tirana Airport, which was built in 1957 and has seen
limited investment since. The steady increase in passenger traffic in recent
years and the airport’s role as the country’s most important traffic hub have
made its modernisation imperative.
Tirana Airport Partners was selected as preferred bidder and will oversee the
modernisation programme and manage the airport, while the government of
Albania retains ultimate ownership.
Riccardo Puliti, EBRD Director for Transport, said the project will be of the
utmost importance for Albania’s economic development. Its innovative structure
makes it a showcase for private-sector investment in medium-sized airport
operations in the region, as well as a model which could be replicated
elsewhere in south-eastern Europe.
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