Sarajevo Airport cancels expansion plans

Sarajevo Airport content with current terminal building

Sarajevo Airport has cancelled the planned 32 million euro expansion of its terminal building, CEO Ivica Veličan confirms. This is despite the airport securing a 25 million euro loan from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) for the purpose of expanding the terminal by 7.000 square metres, building a new apron and overhauling existing jetways. “Several years ago the airport applied for a loan from EBRD on the basis of some master plan. According to this loan, which amounts to 25 million euros, through a concession we would have to hand over our trade, parking, services and free shop”, Mr. Veličan says. According to the CEO some 120 people would have lost their job as a result. He goes on to state that the loan was taken out by the previous management with the aim to destroy the airport.

Bosnia and Herzegovina’s Minister for Transport and Communication, Enver Bijedić (a former Sarajevo Airport employee himself), agrees that it is too early to expand the airport’s capacity. “Sarajevo Airport can function normally with the current passenger flow. We do not have to think about expanding now as it will be some time before passenger numbers rise significantly. What we have to do is think about the immediate future”, Mr. Bijedić says. Terminal expansions and airport upgrades are ongoing across the former Yugoslavia at the moment. Ljubljana and Zagreb are set to begin construction of their respective new terminals next year, Belgrade Airport’s terminals are being refurbished and expanded while a new terminal is also being built in Priština. Furthermore, Skopje recently celebrated the first year since the opening of its brand new terminal building.

So far this year Sarajevo Airport has seen its passenger numbers decrease, after significant network reductions by B&H Airlines and bad weather early on in 2012. In the first ten months of the year Sarajevo Airport welcomed 505.984, down 3.9% on the same period last year. The much talked about expansion of Sarajevo Airport was planned to begin in 2011 but was then delayed until 2012. The current terminal building was overhauled and refurbished in the early 2000s. In 2005 Sarajevo Airport was named the best European airport to handle up to one million passengers.

Comments

  1. Anonymous09:19

    Thank LH and OS for that.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Anonymous10:30

    Wow a sensible move by a gov????? Whats the world coming to!!!! Good on him and i agree giving up all revenue making aspects for the sake of expansion of a airport which is big enough to handle its current and 5-8 yr future numbers is irresponsible..... Hopefully they will refurb it before its starts looking run down although its not to bad interior wise just dont go crazy on the budget.

    ReplyDelete
  3. mandov_purger11:34

    This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Anonymous12:02

    OMG, the most sensible words coming from a politician in EX YU in a long, long time :

    "Bosnia and Herzegovina’s Minister for Transport and Communication, Enver Bijedić (a former Sarajevo Airport employee himself), agrees that it is too early to expand the airport’s capacity. “Sarajevo Airport can function normally with the current passenger flow. We do not have to think about expanding now as it will be some time before passenger numbers rise significantly. What we have to do is think about the immediate future”.

    Thanks God for that, Hope SJJ gets new routes, airlines and more passengers soon.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Anonymous12:20

    Dobar potez BRACO Bosnjaci...pozdrav iz Lijepe Nase! ;) ...i sretan vam Dan Drzavnosti! Volimo vas!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Anonymous12:40

    Oh yes, thanks god a professional expansion plan was cancelled and a modern concession of services like in Europe will not take place. So, all the SDA members and their families can keep their (over)paid jobs at the airport.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Anonymous17:05

    Is Enver Bijedic the son of Dzhemal Bijedic,
    the prime minister of Yugoslavia who was killed together with his wife and some others in an airplane crash in 1977?

    ReplyDelete
  8. Anonymous19:27

    Seriously I'm starting to think no matter what a gov does people will be against the guy doesn't want to give away revenue raising parts of airport sees that expansion is too early and dumb f*cks say its all too keep there jobs lolololol

    ReplyDelete
  9. Anonymous02:01

    So how come only Sarajevo has no need to expand while ALL other ex-yu airports do? Hint: all other airports are expanding their routes. SJJ kicked out wizzair even before wizzair started anything.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Anonymous06:05

    Thats a seperate question buddy management of the airport need to answer why there number are not rising and why new airlines and routes are not attracted.... This is based on the need of expansion where there is none.... Ill give you quiet some revolutionary input Airlines actually dont look at how big your airport is more so how profitable and how many people they can fill there planes with, and pax dont really care how big the airport is when there travel they travel as long as their are planes there .... I know i know quiet facinating

    ReplyDelete
  11. Anonymous00:49

    What an idiotic thing for management to say, that expansion and granting of concessions will destroy the airport and cause job losses. Wizz Air say airport fees were too expensive. It sounds like SJJ is being strangled by it's current management.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

EX-YU Aviation News does not tolerate insults, excessive swearing, racist, homophobic or any other chauvinist remarks or provocative posts with the intention of creating further arguments. A full list of comment guidelines can be found here. Thank you for your cooperation.