New Heraklion International Airport at Kasteli Advances as Total Construction Cost Approaches €1.2 Billion

The cost of additional compensation beyond the original concession agreement for the construction of the new airport at Kasteli, Heraklion, has reached €444.3 million, while the total construction cost has risen to almost €1.2 billion. According to a decision by the Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport, the act entitled “Compensation arising from the Contract for the project ‘Design, Construction, Financing, Operation, Maintenance and Exploitation of the New Heraklion International Airport in Crete and Design, Construction and Financing of its Road Connections (Law 4612/2019)’,” with OPS Code 5227109, under the “Infrastructure and Transport Development Programme 2021–2025,” has been amended.

According to the scope of the act, compensation for the project includes the following:

1. Compensation to the company as a result of the extension of the overall T1 Design–Construction Period deadline and the project’s interim deadlines. Compensation to the company for the loss of revenue during the 24-month period by which the start date of the O
2. perating Period was postponed, after deducting the corresponding TEAA amount for the Design–Construction Period.
3. Compensation to the Airport Company due to the shortfall in the corresponding TEAA amount for the Design–Construction Period resulting from measures taken to address the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and 2021.
4. Compensation to the Airport Company due to a change in legislation requiring the construction of a 3 km tunnel.

Initially, a decision by the Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport had estimated the compensation at €363.9 million last November. Under the new decision, the amount has now increased by approximately €80 million. The project’s original cost was €625 million.

It should be recalled that this amendment essentially formalises the increase in the airport’s cost, which ypodomes.com had already reported since last autumn, as a result of the four developments outlined above.

The largest additional cost relates to the 3-kilometre tunnel, which exceeds €160 million and was deemed necessary following the discovery of archaeological remains in the Petriakos Lakkos area. Overall, the construction cost now stands at almost €1.08 billion.

How construction is progressing

According to the current schedule, test flights will take place at Kasteli International Airport in 2027, paving the way for the start of regular operations.

Construction progress currently exceeds 75%, while on August 7 a major contract for the air navigation systems was also signed. The contract was signed between the concession company Heraklion International Airport of Crete (IAHC) and the Indra Sistemas S.A. – ATESE consortium, in the presence of Minister of Infrastructure and Transport Christos Dimas, Deputy Minister of Infrastructure and Transport Nikos Tachiaos, Secretary General for Infrastructure Dimitris Anagnopoulos and Civil Aviation Authority Governor Giorgos Vagenas.

The signing of the contract represents a crucial step towards the completion of the new Heraklion International Airport of Crete. It covers the design, supply, installation, integration, testing and commissioning of the new airport’s air navigation systems, including all related works and services. The contract has a duration of 27 months from the date of signing, while the total cost of the procurement amounts to €105,219,189.40, including 24% VAT.

When the cost of these systems is included, the total cost of the new airport reaches almost €1.2 billion.

The new airport at Kasteli aims to develop into an aviation hub for the wider region. The shareholders of Heraklion International Airport of Crete (IAHC) include the GMR Group, the Greek State (45.9%) and GEK TERNA Group (32.46%). The goal is for the airport to maintain high passenger traffic throughout the year.

The start of operations is tentatively scheduled for 2028. The airport is initially expected to handle 11.5–12 million passengers, rising to almost 18 million over a 30-year period. Future expansion of both the terminal and other airport facilities has also already been planned to accommodate further growth in passenger traffic.

The airport will feature:

• 1 runway, 3,200 metres long, classified as ICAO Code 4E *
• 1 parallel aircraft taxiway of the same length *
• 8 connecting taxiways linking the runway with the parallel taxiway
• 2 connecting taxiways linking to the Military Airport runway
  An aircraft parking apron comprising 5 fixed Code E stands (or 10 Code C stands), 27 remote Code C stands and 2 Code C stands (or 1 Code E stand), 16 stands for General Aviation and 3 helicopter stands *
• A seven-level Terminal Building with a total floor area of 93,000 sq.m.
• A 4,850 sq.m. Control Tower, 44 metres high
• 10 buildings/facilities required for airport operations: Fire Service, Police, Airport Maintenance, ground-handling company facilities, electricity distribution facilities, a 150 kV substation, water tanks, a wastewater treatment facility, a fuel storage and aircraft refuelling facility using an underground hydrant system, and an airport waste collection facility
• Parking and service areas for 1,378 vehicles, 206 motorcycles, 168 taxis and 96 buses
• A 400,000 sq.m. area for the development of a Commercial Zone
• An approximately 18 km controlled-access motorway connecting the airport with the Northern Road Axis of Crete (BOAK) near Hersonissos, comprising two carriageways with two traffic lanes in each direction and a service road network along its entire length
• An approximately 6 km arterial road connecting the airport with the Arkalochori–Viannos Road, with one traffic lane and a widened emergency lane in each direction, as well as a service road network along its entire length
• A 1.5 km Kasteli ring road
• An external airport perimeter road network involving upgrades to the affected existing roads, with an estimated total length of 20 km.

For more details and the complete article in Greek, click here