4 contenders for the Kalamata Airport concession – Concession tender for another 22 regional airports is being finalised

It is estimated that offers for the concession contract of Kalamata airport will be submitted by summer. The new development is that the proposed contracts have been given to the candidate entities for review, questions, and appropriate preparation.

The big challenge is to announce the contractor during the summer. However, we will have to wait until 2025 for the contract to be signed, as the procedural aspects of concession contracts are quite time-consuming.

Let us remind you that in the second phase of the competition, the following entities have progressed:

• GEK TERNA S.A. – GMR Airports Limited
• MYTILINAIOS S.A. – CORPORATION AMERICA AIRPORTS S.A
• Egis Airport Operation – AKTOR CONCESSIONS SINGLE MEMBER S.A. – Aéroports de la Cote d’Azur
• FRAPORT AG – DELTA AIRPORT INVESTMENTS S.A. – PILEAS S.A.

The international airport of Kalamata, which has evolved into a dynamic destination in recent years – with Costa Navarino being its flagship – has attracted the interest of major market players. The four entities that have shown interest are GEK TERNA – GMR Airports, Mytilineos – Corporation America Airports, Egis Airport Operation – AKTOR Concessions – Aéroports de la Cote d’Azur, Fraport AG – Delta Airports – PILEAS (of the Konstantakopoulos Group). The entity that prevails will assume, through an SPV, the management, operation, development, expansion, maintenance, and exploitation of Kalamata International Airport for 40 years.

From 2010 to today, passenger traffic at Kalamata Airport has increased by 250%. In 2022, it exceeded 351,000 passengers, and this year’s traffic is showing a new record. The goal now is for Messinian Airport to reach 500,000 passengers by 2030.

New concession tender for another 22 regional airports

Developments, particularly those concerning the new tender for the concession of the country’s 22 regional airports by the Hellenic Republic Asset Development Fund (HRADF), are expected soon. According to sources close to the tender, the text of the tender announcement is currently being finalized by the consultant hired by the HRADF.

Upon completion of the process, the countdown will begin for the announcement of the project, and according to the same sources, the goal is to start the expression of interest by summer. It has been clarified that the 22 airports will be grouped into a cluster, and there will not be a division into two or three groups, as was the case with the 14 airports eventually taken over by Fraport Greece.

The 22 airports entering the concession process are as follows: Chios, Alexandroupoli, Araxos, Karpathos, Lemnos, Ioannina, Milos, Naxos, Paros, Ikaria, Kythira, Leros, Sitia, Nea Anchialos, Kalymnos, Skyros, Syros, Astypalea, Kastellorizo, Kastoria, Kasos, and Kozani. Most of them are small airports with limited commercial interest, but they have a significant social impact on the lives of residents in the regions they serve.

The most important among them are those of Chios, Syros, Naxos, and Paros, all with significant tourist character. The 22 regional airports complete the series of tenders through which the state-owned airports of the country are privatized in their entirety. It began with Athens airport in the 1990s, followed by the 14 Regional airports in 2017, the new airport in Kastelli Heraklion in 2019, and Kalamata airport in 2022.

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