Romanian-Ukrainian tie-up plans to build new Bucharest airport

The new airport, worth an estimated 400 million euro ($432.7 million), will be built at the site of a decommissioned military airfield near the town of Alexeni, in the southern Ialomita county, some 60 km from Bucharest, Automagistral-Pivden said in a social media post last week.

Avant Airports, the project developer, has assembled a team of experts from over 15 countries to develop the project, Automagistral-Pivden said. The Ukrainian company will be responsible for executing the construction works, it added.

Currently, only the first stage of the project has been completed, with the concession agreement for the Alexeni airfield signed with the Ialomita county council, said Automagistral-Pivden.

Contacted by SeeNews, Avant Airport's CEO, Carmen Bahrim said in an emailed statement that as leader of the consortium, the Romanian company is in discussions with several potential investors interested in the project and is exploring various financing options for it, but no further details related to financing could be disclosed at this point due to confidentiality requirements.

The Ialomita county council told SeeNews in a separate emailed statement that the consortium has signed the concession agreement for the former military airfield at Alexeni for a term of 49 years, for an annual royalty payment of close to 2 million lei ($435,220/402,300 euro).

"The first payment is scheduled according to the terms set out in the concession contract: within 45 days of its signing on March 18, 2024," Carmen Bahrim said. The funds needed for the first royalty payment will be secured from the consortium's own resources, she added.

The concept of the future airport includes a passenger terminal spreading on 30,000 sq m and capable of serving 6.5 million passengers annually, along with a cargo terminal spanning 20,000 sq m for handling over 10,000 tons of cargo per year, according to Automagistral-Pivden.

The project will have a completion period of four years from the moment of signing the contract for construction works.

The new airport aims to relieve congestion at Bucharest's Otopeni and Baneasa airports, handle all cargo types, accommodate wide-body long-haul planes like Boeing 777 and Airbus A330, attract low-cost carriers, and specialise in aircraft maintenance, said Automagistral-Pivden.

Established in 2004, the Ukrainian company is specialized in infrastructure construction, including motorways, transport hubs, bridges, hydraulic structures, and airfield complexes, it said.

Bucharest-headquartered Avant Airports is a Romanian company established in 2016 whose line of business is services related to air transport, according to data published on the the Romanian finance ministry's website. It booked a net profit of 236,670 lei in 2022 and had only one employee at that year's end.

According to Avant Airports's CEO, the company shareholders are Carmen Bahrim with 10%, Mircea Tudor with 33%, Vizant & Partners - a company solely owned by Valentin Vizant - with 33%, and the company Avant Petroleum with 24%. Avant Petroleum is 70/30 owned by Valentin Vizant and Carmen Bahrim.

($=0.924348 euro)