Ljubljana Airport poised for new terminal


The operator of Ljubljana Jože Pučnik Airport, Fraport, has adopted plans for the construction of a new passenger terminal according to the daily "Finance". Plans for the new facility are expected to be announced next month, with the project valued between fifteen and twenty million euros. Previously, Ljubljana Airport's General Manager, Zmago Skobir, said a decision on whether a second terminal would be built would be made by the end of March. In 2013, minority shareholders, which have since been squeezed out, rejected plans for the construction of a 57 million euro new terminal building. The new facility was meant to cover an area of 31.200 square metres, with its opening planned for 2015. Following Fraport's takeover, the construction of a new terminal was put on hold with greater focus put on revamping existing facilities.

Commenting on plans for the new terminal in more detail, Mr Skobir said last month, "The owners [Fraport] will make a decision by the end of March. The terminal would expand towards Šenčur and would be slightly smaller than the one previously planned. However, beforehand, it is necessary to look at all the calculations. We are in a better position now because the trends have changed, Adria Airways has a new owner and there is a greater understanding of the investment". He added, "The construction of the new terminal would cost fifteen to twenty million euros, which is slightly lower than originally planned, but work could begin immediately". Ljubljana is facing increased competition from nearby airports which are investing heavily in improving their infrastructure.

Ljubljana Airport is also expected to begin work on revamping its existing terminal this autumn. "Under current plans, the overhaul of the existing terminal would begin this autumn and it should be fitted with new technology. We have already made some quick fixes to improve passenger flow", Mr Skobir noted. Earlier this week, the Fraport Group reported that Ljubljana Airport's net profit fell 23.1% in 2016 to two million euros. Revenues increased 3.4% to 36 million euros. Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation increased almost 24% to 14.5 million euros, while earnings before interest and taxes increased 2.7 million to 4.4 million euros.

Comments

  1. Anonymous09:03

    I think it might be the case of too little to late.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:10

      it's never too late. and they said they plan a smaller terminal, so that will be perfectly enough for the increased trafic LJU will be having. They won't see a massive tourism boom like croatia did, but their numbers will slowly rise every year, so a new smaller terminal makes perfect sense. it's future proofing, rather than competing with other neighbouring airports

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:12

      +1 @ 9.10

      Delete
  2. Anonymous09:06

    15 million for a new terminal is not very expensive.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:07

      It almost seems like they are building something just to build something
      Pristina cost 100 mil euros, im assuming Skopje was around that mark. Split is basically only expanding for about 60 mil

      Delete
  3. Anonymous09:07

    Finally!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Anonymous09:10

    It's interesting that last year they said it would be a few years before they consider a new terminal and now they are fast forwarding the plan. Why?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:13

      Competition. Look at what is happening at Zagreb.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:18

      Talking about LJU vs ZAG I think Ljubljana's big chance is in LCCs. If they could attract them they could lure some passengers from Zagreb rather than the other way around.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous09:26

      indeed

      Delete
    4. Anonymous09:31

      agree, turn it into LCC base, for the rest there is ZAG and VCE. Adria will be soon history

      + why do you need a new terminal when your biggest airline will be soon bankrupt?

      Delete
    5. Anonymous09:46

      People have been saying Adria will go bankrupt for a better part of a decade and it's still around.

      Delete
    6. Anonymous10:26

      Yes, but in 2017 there is for the first time a pilot strike, which is costing Adria a lot of money (short-notice ad-hoc wet leases aren't cheap).

      Also, the company has no capital to sell to government companies at exaggerated prices (Adria Tehnika), no aircraft to sell, nothing.

      Delete
  5. Anonymous09:14

    This is really not necessary. It's a nice to have.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:17

      Why not? I think the capacity of the current terminal is 2 million. Ljubljana is not quite there yet but it is not far either. It will probably take at least 2 years to build this terminal. They are thinking ahead.

      Delete
  6. Anonymous09:20

    Excellent news. LJU is quite a mess during peak hours already.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Anonymous09:24

    the old terminal (pre Schengen times) was cult!

    sardine box but loved it. nice mix of people ex-yu gastos vs ski-tourists

    ReplyDelete
  8. Anonymous09:24

    I hope it happens. Judging my the cost I doubt it will be massive so will probably be completed quite quickly.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Anonymous09:27

    It's really unfortunate they cancelled the original new terminal plan. On top of the fact that it looked good it would have been done by now. LJU would have been much more competitive.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:34

      Especially unfortunate since the EU agreed to fund a big chunk of the that terminal.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:39

      @ 9.27 are there any renderings of that terminal planned for a few years ago?

      Delete
    3. Anonymous09:42

      http://www.airport-business.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/terminal-21.jpg

      http://www.lju-airport.si/images/clanki/img3923.jpg

      Delete
    4. Anonymous09:45

      Great. Thank you.

      Delete
    5. Alen Šćuric Purger10:06

      Don't think that EU fill finance that terminal. EU decide not to finance terminals any more as they had so many "bad" investments in past like Maribor airport. Dubrovnik was the last one, take this opportunity in last second.

      Delete
  10. Anonymous09:34

    I'm really happy to hear that Fraport is reconsidering plans to build a new terminal and that we most probably won't have to wait 5-10 years for them to build it.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Anonymous09:43

    Fraport has done absolutely nothing for Ljublajana Airport since its took over. No major new carriers, no major infrastructure projects, passenger numbers have gone down...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:52

      and that's why people here in Serbia are against them taking over BEG

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:56

      I read yesterday that Fraport said because of the big interest for Belgrade they will put more focus on Sofia concession meaning that they might give up or have no expectations to win the Belgrade contract.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous10:27

      SOF concession process was stopped...

      Delete
    4. Anonymous10:29

      @ 9.43 well they are building the Fraport Academy at LJU airport.

      Delete
    5. Anonymous10:30

      Wow, that's going to really boost the tourism and all the related things?

      Delete
  12. JU520 BEGLAX09:51

    Slovenia and too many Slovenians have a serious lack of vision for infrastructure and a sustainable and progressive development for their country. You can see the lack of infrastructure in all corners whether this is the airport of Ljubljana, Bus Stations across the country, Railway stations, Hotels in places such as Bled, Kranjska Gora, also for a long time in Portoroz and Ljubljana, road infrastructure besides highways (also HWY network took them 30 years and its still not completely finished but thats also for political reasons). Of the ancillary roads and their traffic jams on the way to Ljubljana every workday morning we dont even speak speak. Ljubljana was the green capital of Europa in 2016, but no vision for tramways or a S-Bahn System. Green capital with a Bus Station which reminds me to a Bis Station in a 2nd world country but not the Green Capital of the progressive Europa.
    I like the strategy of the green tourism but thats covers just a part of tourism. Also here lack of visions for example to expand slopes in ski resorts or build some cablecars or rack railways to some higher peaks. U dont need much but at least 2 or 3 to boost tourism. If I judge the Hotel quality in Bled in the 4 and 5 star range and compare this with Croatiac coast, the differences are obvious and scarely undeveloped.
    The problem sits deep in Slovenias society with their ongoing concerns for foreign investments, foreign influence and and in many aspects regressive way of thinking. If I speak with to Slovenians, I hear too many times why do we need this and that, we are fine what we hve. Why change and progress, it can stay like it is.
    So no wonder that Croatia has a much better tourism infrastructure than Slovenia, even Belgrade has more to offer in terms of hotels than what Ljubljana has (however we saw some notable progress in LJU in the past 5 years) and no wonder that Ljubljana airport still has no new airport terminal You can go thru ex Yugoslavia and expand your travel to Sofia, Bratislava, Prague, Poland, Ukraine, Baltics and Russis. All corners being economically behind Slovnenia innthe past or now bit u find everywhere an updated airport infrastructure.

    Dont get me wrong Slovenians in this blog, my mother is Slovenian too, this is no bashing of Slovenia but a critical sight fm outside coupled with hope that one day things can get better
    Its not that the country is making no progress but Slovenia is definitely not there where it already could be!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous10:17

      True! You said it as it is.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous10:28

      Sad, but 100% true. Such nice country, led by corrupt people who have never seen anything better.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous10:32

      Yeeee, I'm Slovenian and I agree with you 100%. Compared to other Ex-You states Slovenian traffic and touristic infrastructure is a complete mess. No vision, no progress. The number of tourists is declining. A lot of dirt and junk around the roads and in the nature. Full of sloppy bus stations, traffic jams and shabby hotels. Quote: "sustainable and progressive development for their country" is completely lacking in our country. Compared to (as you've mentioned Croatia and Serbia) is like comparing rotten apples to a pineapple. Probably the consequence of our strange, weird and fuc*** up mentality. I hope some day I will migrate to some other country.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous10:50

      I'm @anon at 10:32

      I agree with other comments. Slovenia is in such a pore state. Everything is going downhills. In the last survey Slovenia was the most corrupted country in the eastern Europe. I think that within the next 10 years Croatia and Serbia will overrun Slovenia - Croatia as touristic and business central-hub state and Serbia as economic and industrial superpower. I feel so bad for my beautiful country with shabby bust stations.

      Delete
    5. Anonymous10:52

      Sorry to burst people's bubble but Slovenia is still by far the most developed country from ex-Yu and has the highest standard and I say that as someone that is from Serbia.

      Delete
    6. Anonymous11:15

      lol you must be kidding people...Slovenia is ages ahead of any piece of land across ex-yu.
      And aviation will bounce back once Adria is history and a more sustainable business models settle down

      Delete
    7. Anonymous11:47

      I'm sorry but I cannot agree with this assessment of Slovenia's infrastructure at all. In order to be able to comment on issues, you should first look at the actual data, not use anecdotal evidence.

      Slovenia is the most developed country in the former Yugoslavia and for good reason. The highway system is perfectly adequate, serving most of the country's regions, major population and economic centres, the main transit routes and importantly, generating a profit. Capacity increases are planned where necessary and there are some missing links to Croatia and to a few major towns such as Velenje but many of these routes are not economically justified at the moment. Economic concerns are important when making investments into infrastructure or you may end up with a system on the verge of bankruptcy, not unheard of in the region. Furthermore, (belated) investment in national roads, railways and public transport integration is underway and the port in Koper has become the largest container port in the Northern Adriatic in a matter of years, not to mention the investments into utilities and fibre optics. Ljubljana Airport is the major sore point when it comes to our infrastructure, but I'm afraid it simply does not have the necessary conditions to become a major airport, with or without a fancy new terminal. Slovenia does not have a large diaspora abroad, no mass tourism and the population, while affluent for SE Europe standards, is small. The airport will grow steadily in the long term, but it will never achieve a breakthrough IMHO.

      You are correct that tourism is much more developed in Croatia and I'm happy for our southern neighbours that they have managed to turn it into a success story. That said, I don't think we should set them as an example as Slovenia cannot possibly cater to mass tourism the way Croatia can. However, we can successfully target lucrative niches. I'd rather see an explosion of small family-run B&Bs and tourist farms than large hotels, although they are certainly necessary to a degree. Finally, building new ski resorts and cable cars is daydreaming with the effects of global warming.

      Delete
    8. Anonymous11:50

      +1000

      Delete
    9. Anonymous11:57

      JU520 BEGLAX Is correct. Slovenia is in rapid decline compared with Serbia and Croatia. My Father is from Serbia. And you can't believe. Traffic jams on the Slovenian highways in the morning, no airport connections, corrupted politicians (way beyond other Ex-You people), unfriendly people, no bus stops, bankrupted railways, no tourists. It is really hard to live here. No strategy. I hope Slovenians will not be offended by my comments. They are nice people but I'm thinking about moving to Serbia or Croatia (my grandmother was Croatian).

      Delete
    10. Anonymous12:10

      I don't get it. As long as 10 years ago the story of Slovenian spa industry was a shining example of how tourism can grow literally out of nothing. And I visited some of those spas and agreed 100% - they were all awesome. How come all of a sudden there is no vision, infrastructure, attitude, anything...?

      On top of everything, I completely refuse to believe that the corruption among Slovenian politicians is larger or more toxic compared to their Serbian (or Bosnian) peers. It could be that Slovenia fell back on some high EU standards but god save them from ever becoming same or worse than the rest of exYU.

      Delete
    11. Anonymous12:13

      I don't think Slovenians have the right picture of how people in other ex-Yu countries live. I work with Slovenians and I here exactly the same things from them like I read here but they don't seem to understand that it is far from rosy elsewhere. What I have noticed that the economic crisis has had a huge impact on people morale there.

      Delete
    12. Anonymous12:54

      Take it easy, people. Sure, Slovenia has its fair share of problems, but you're exagerating here. It's still the most developed exYu country and our politicians are probably not the most corrupt in all of exYu (pa i šire).

      Delete
    13. Anonymous13:24

      OMG, what a load of BS. Maybe you should check some hard data instead of making conclusions about Slovenia on "works" of peace of s*** Fraport.

      Delete
    14. JU520 BEGLAX13:27

      Anonym 1210h - the Spa tourism is quite developed and makes progress
      Look a well run hotel needs apx every 10 years an update on rooms. Current trend is carpets out. I cant stand hotels with carpets, disgusting. If u check which rooms of the Bled hotels had an update in the past 5-10 years, u are probl at at share of 10-15% and this in their nbr 1 alpine resort
      Kranjska Gora is a hint better but not comparable to A CH and Italy

      Regarding cable cars and global warming. Not sure what is linked to but if u hve environmental concerns; Sitzerlands highlights such as the Gornergrat, Jungfraujoch, Klein Matterhorn are raising awareness for high altitude life of fauna and flora and the environment in general. Everytime i m up there i m amazed how beautiful our planet is but also how careful we hve to be not polluting it

      Re infrastructure and budget discipline: Switzerland but also some other nations are a good example about good infrastructure but budget discipline
      And as we all know that 1 EUR of infrastructure investment is usually 2 EUR if ROI. So be open for it. As we can see it pays well of in Croatia and Switzerland (and bith are ways away fm mass tourism as u can see it in other parts of Europe

      Delete
    15. Anonymous15:42

      Dude, your standards are waaaay to high. Even the pickiest, filthy rich American tourists wouldn't be able to find anything to request from you :)

      Delete
    16. Anonymous15:47

      I agree with the guy at 1:27 PM. Life and infrastructure in other ex-you states is way better than in Slovenia. Talking from my personal experiences.

      Delete
    17. Anonymous00:10

      You're funny. If you're a tycoon, corrupt politician or shady businesman, then other ex Yu countries are better for you. As a "normal person" I'd much rather live in Slovenia than elsewhere in ex Yu. Regardless of flashy new terminals and direct flights to Johannesburg, Taipei and Lima.

      Delete
    18. Anonymous17:21

      Poor Slovenians ! You should come to Skopje to see how people here live !

      Delete
    19. Might just be that Slovenian mentality is different and closer to the European standards. I'm Croatian and, setting aside tourism, Slovenia is far ahead of Croatia in every other aspect. The port of Kopar, as someone mentioned, is a great example of that. It's formerly a sleepy little fishing town which in the last couple of decades not only took over Rijeka as a cargo/container port, but left it far behind, competing with Trieste.
      And this investment in the new terminal at Ljubljana Airport sounds just about right. Thinking ahead. Because as soon as Ljubljana recovers and the passenger numbers bounce back, it'll soon get to 2 million, which is currently its full capacity.

      Delete
  13. Anonymous09:51

    Does anyone know what size it would be?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:57

      We will know next month when the project is presented.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:58

      Judging by the estimated cost, not very big (probably just a refurbishment of the old one).

      Delete
    3. Anonymous10:05

      No it will be a new building. It's unrelated to the refurbishment.

      Delete
  14. Anonymous10:09

    The current terminal was originally built to handle 500,000 pax. They planned in the past to build a new 31,200 sqm terminal next to today's one, connect them, add 6 air bridges and then refurbish the existing terminal. We will see if they stick to the old plans.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous10:21

      They already said they won't stick to the old plans.

      "The terminal would expand towards Šenčur and would be slightly smaller than the one previously planned".

      Delete
  15. Alen Šćuric Purger10:18

    15 million is nothing. You can not bild terminal bigger than 500.0000 passenger with that money:
    - ZAG invest in reconstruction of old terminal around 30 million,

    - Belgrade around 50 million.

    - Split for 1 million passengers 60 million EUR,

    - Dubrovnik 200 million EUR for 1,5 million passengers,

    - Maribor 15 million for 600.000 passengers.

    So with 15 million they will build something like 400-500.000 passengers capacity just to show something was done. Of course there is no need for megalomaniac project, those projects are history, but also we can not say that is major investment and big deal.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous10:24

      Agree. They will probably build something similar to what we have in Maribor. Like you said just to build and show they have done something.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous10:29

      Maybe they are building a very nice LCC terminal, which doesn't need fingers or anything fancy...

      Delete
    3. Anonymous10:48

      True. We don't know what their plans are. They could very well be building a no frills terminal.

      Delete
    4. Alen Šćuric Purger13:55

      In Maribor they build nice LCC terminal for 600.000 people and without fingers and anything fancy. For 15 million. So, one can not supposed it will be more than that. In Ljubljana it can be just more expensive to build same size terminal than in Maribor, for sure not cheaper.

      Delete
    5. Anonymous14:19

      Ne lupetaj aerodram je u opstini Kranj.

      Delete
    6. Anonymous15:02

      Small correction for you as well last anonymous. LJU airport is located in municipality Cerklje na Gorenjskem. Besides, the only cost difference between Ljubljana and Maribor is in the price of the land. Buiding costs are the same in LJU and MBX, as there is enough competition among construction companies.

      Delete
    7. Alen Šćuric Purger00:12

      As I said, for sure not cheaper. So, more than 600.000 passengers cheap LCC terminal, or if it will be with air bridges and not so cheap for not more than 400.000.

      I molio bih da svoju kroničnu nekulturu i neodgoj ne koristite na ovom cijenjenom forumu. Ovdje ljudi ne "lupetaju". Takvo birtijaško komuniciranje ostavite za kavane i tržnice. Tome mjesto nije ovdje. Nedostatak kućnog odgoja nije izgovor za kočijaško ponašanje. I hvala na pojašnjenju da je Ljubljanski aerodrom bliže Kranju nego Ljubljani, baš ste mi vi to trebali reči. Naputovao sam se sa njega, radio tamo niz poslova i putovao do njega više od 100 puta. Možda da pročitate komentar pa da shvatite intenciju cijele priče.

      A konačno kasnije ste mogli pročitati da se isti ni ne nalazi u općini Kranj, pa vam je sigurno jako neugodno radi izjave sa "lupetanjem". Meni bi bilo. Iako, tako što se meni ne može desiti. Mene su moji roditelji odgojili.

      Delete
  16. Anonymous10:28

    Excellent news. Finally something happening with Ljubljana.

    ReplyDelete
  17. Anonymous10:50

    What for?
    For ghosts only?
    The terminal is full 1 x day (30 minutes) sometimes 2 x day (1 hour) in summer with charters additional 1 hour. That's all.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous10:58

      The new part that already exist (so after security check&the boarding area) is nice and functunal and probably big enough (for now!-you have to start building new facilities before the traffic rises).on the other hand the check-in area is way too small!!i agree it's ok, when you have check-in for 3 50seaters simultaneously but for everything else is way to small!and if LJU airport can make a profit even with a passanger decline like in 2016, why couldn't they invest their own money into their own facilities?!

      Delete
  18. Anonymous11:03

    Good. A new terminal has been needed for 20 years already...

    ReplyDelete
  19. Anonymous11:15

    Better to build it bigger now in case traffic grows, then to become too small after 10 years! Split is a good example of how not to do things.

    ReplyDelete
  20. Anonymous11:43

    LJU is starting to fall behind the competition. Time to wake up.

    ReplyDelete
  21. Anonymous12:16

    Interesting article in Slovenian media today comparing Ljubljana, Zagreb and Belgrade airports.

    http://siol.net/posel-danes/novice/ljubljansko-letalisce-v-senci-zagreba-in-beograda-prehitevajo-ga-celo-dalmatinci-foto-438016

    ReplyDelete
  22. Anonymous12:53

    Hopefully they focus on getting more airlines. Along with this project, the airport should be ok. Passenger numbers are going up.

    ReplyDelete
  23. Anonymous13:22

    OT and a bit more interesting topic, my friend works for EK and here are bookigs on the first five flights to ZAG:

    1. 29
    2. 41
    3. 17
    4. 55
    5. 72

    He just told me the numbers, don't know the classes. By launch flights should be well full.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous13:40

      5 looks really good, it will be at least 190 by the time it takes off

      Delete
    2. Anonymous14:02

      Three looks really good too

      Delete
    3. Anonymous14:06

      @AnonymousMarch 23, 2017 at 1:22 PM

      I wouldn't worry your friend or you're saying, and as top booking figures we'll know closer to June, we are still March.

      Also I think you're a troll, just here to provoke a fight, not nice person, you are!
      Very nasty business, very nasty.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous14:11

      So you are saying that any loads below 90% is a lie? Lol ok

      Delete
    5. Anonymous14:22

      What's your problem, these are not bad loads this early.

      Delete
    6. Anonymous18:27

      Pa čoveče, šta vas briga da li je pun let ili poluprazan. Svakako će ga plaćati Emirates a ne građani susedne nam Hrvatske.

      Delete
    7. Anonymous18:30

      A koja je svrha tvog komentara? Čovek je jednostavno podelio sa nama popunjenost na prvom letu, eto meni je to zanimljivo.

      Delete
  24. Anonymous13:39

    If there are any insiders. Does anyone know what became of the norwegian and vueling airlines showing interest in LJU? Is there still time for them to announce the routes or is the opportunity missed and they're talking more about possible flights in summer 2018?

    ReplyDelete
  25. Anonymous13:44

    Where exactly did you get this info from?
    Finance website does not report this

    ReplyDelete
  26. Nemjee18:29

    OT

    Fraport just bought 14 regional airports in Greece. Let's hope they stay away from Belgrade.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Nemjee18:35

      A total of €345.000.000 will be invested in two phases. First phase will see airports such as Thessaloniki, Kavala, Zakynthos, Chania, Kefalonia, Corfu and Aktion upgraded.

      Second phase will include Rhodes, Kos, Mykonos, Santorini, Samos, Skiathos and Mytilene.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous21:28

      If I'm right - this was one of the things Germany agreed with Greece when they needed help to overcome the crysis...

      Delete
    3. Nemjee23:46

      Could be, everything is possible. However, I remember that the Greek government has been trying to sell these smaller airports for many years now.
      I am sure they added SKG and RHO to make the deal more attractive.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous00:26

      No. an open contest was held and among the final three bidders Fraport offered by far the most money. 1.4 billion Euros plus 45 million every year plus a minimum investment in the airports buildings of 320 million in the first 5 years.

      Delete
  27. Anonymous18:33

    New terminal sounds good. If they get BEG they might built a new one here as well.

    ReplyDelete

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