Representatives of several international airport operators have toured Montenegro’s airports as part of the ongoing concession process initiated by the Montenegrin government. The visits to Podgorica and Tivat airports mark a key phase in the selection process for a long-term concessionaire who will be responsible for managing and modernising the country’s two hubs. Incheon International Airport Corporation from South Korea, Corporacion Amarica Airports (CAAP) from Luxembourg and Turkey’s TAV, which are considered front-runners in the much-delayed concession process, toured the airports and attended talks with relevant stakeholders. The trio last visited Montenegro in 2021.
According to Montenegro’s Ministry for Transport, interested companies have been given an opportunity to assess the current infrastructure, operational capabilities, and expansion potential of both airports. The government aims to attract a strategic partner that can invest in improving airport facilities, increasing passenger capacity, and enhancing overall efficiency. The state sees the concession as a way to unlock new investments at the airports, which have not had any major infrastructure upgrades since the concession process was launched in 2019.
Incheon International Airport, which manages South Korea’s main hub in Seoul, has been attempting to establish a foothold in the region. It was a finalist in the concession processes in both Zagreb and Belgrade but ultimately missed out to its French counterparts. It also runs the airports in Manila, Jakarta and Kuwait Terminal 4. CAAP operates 52 airports in six countries across Latin America and Europe, including in Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay, Ecuador, Armenia and Italy. It previously bid for the concession of Belgrade Airport. Finally, TAV has a notable presence in the region as the operator of Skopje and Ohrid airports, as well as the management of Zagreb Airport through its tie-up with Aeroports de Paris. A decision on the future concessionaire of Montenegro’s airports is expected later this year.
It's going to be TAV for sure.
ReplyDeleteTAV has a good reputation. I wouldn't have an issue if they won.
DeleteThis concession process has been going on forever
ReplyDeleteBoth airports need expansion and investment.
ReplyDelete+1
DeleteIt’s about time Montenegro modernized its airports. Tivat, in particular, struggles during peak season. Hopefully, a serious investor will finally bring the necessary upgrades.
DeleteIs TGD really that bad? I mean it's not such a busy airport, especially in winter. From what I noticed there are periods of the day when the airport is very busy and then other times when it's very quiet. Maybe it's time to consider encouraging LCCs to operate at quieter times of the day.
DeleteI used the airport several times and I loved how fast you could get to the gate. Tivat is a different matter as the airport turns into a chaotic zoo in summer.
They should be careful with who they pick. I wish BEG had gone for Incheon instead of Vinci.
Would be interesting to see what they all propose
ReplyDeleteIncheon trying to break into the Balkans again after missing out on Zagreb and Belgrade :D
ReplyDeleteIncheon International Airport is one of the best-managed airports in the world. Montenegro would benefit greatly if they win the concession.
DeleteDaily ICN flights to Tivat and Podgorica.
Delete😂
DeleteWhen they were in the running for BEG, they said they would establish flights to ICN immediately. It was at the same time Jin Air said it would launch flights to BEG.
DeleteIf ICN-BEG flights would make sense then they would happen even without getting the concession.
DeleteCalling them bluff...
I just hope whoever wins improves the passenger experience. Tivat Airport is a nightmare in summer, and we desperately need better facilities and more gates.
ReplyDeletePlus a parallel taxiway so that planes don't have to use the runway in order to reach their take off position.
DeleteIt’s been years since this concession process started. Let’s hope the government actually follows through this time and doesn’t delay things again.
ReplyDeleteFraport is better than all of the above.
ReplyDeleteYou are right. Just look at Ljubljana 🙂
DeleteJust look in Greece and its airports with high seasonality for what Fraport can achieve.
DeleteThat does not change the fact that they have done a poor job in LJU.
DeleteThe fact is that they are doing a very good job in 24 airports around the world but not in LJU.
DeleteA logical conclusion would be that the problem is LJU and not Fraport.
Sure they are doing a very good job, especially at VAR and BOJ. Bravo Fraport!
DeleteThey are not doing a very good job and Frankfurt itself is disaster and nightmare for passengers, both p2p and transfer, especially transfer. All others managed by Fraport are even worse.
Delete^^^
DeleteLOL, delulu is strong with this one!
FRA is a horrible airport. On top of everything it is infested with rats that are running around the terminal which I think is horrible but maybe you think it's peak example of good management. If you saw that at any ex-Yu airport you would be calling it third world. Also the airport is completely dependant on LH with over 60% passenger share and is still way below pre Covid numbers also.
DeleteUnfortunately, these airport concessions in the Balkans are all about politics. They are always given to an EU company. This time there are none from EU so it will be interesting. The Luxembourg one is just based in Luxembourg on paper. It is actually from South America.
ReplyDeleteTAV is EU-owned. Plus origin from Turkey. So it will for sure win here too,
DeleteSo they are definitely giving both Podgorica and Tivat up for concession as a package?
ReplyDeleteYes, it would be pretty useless otherwise to just give up TGD or TIV. Or there were some ideas to do that.
DeleteHow long will the concession go for?
ReplyDeleteThe way things are going, it might take as long as the selection process.
DeleteGood luck and choose wisely.
ReplyDeleteWould it make more sense to build one big airport between TGD and TIV to serve both the capital and cost?
ReplyDelete*coast
DeleteTivat Airport is crucial for tourism since it’s close to the Bay of Kotor. A single airport further inland would be too far away. For something like this to work, Montenegro would need to invest heavily in new highways or rail connections which is difficult to imagine. Also not sure if terrain would allow for an airport midway.
Deleteim not from MNE (nor Turkey) but TAV looks like the most logical having a look at their portoflio: Tbilisi+Batumi, Skopje+Ohrid
ReplyDeleteAnd they would do well to increase LCC operations.
DeleteTrue
DeleteI hope the government will choose the best balance between investment and traffic growth. If you give an airport to an operator which offers the most money, this automatically means expensive airport, therefore least preferred by low cost airlines. Sofia Airport concession was awarded to Meridiam with Munich airport which offered not the best investment offer, but offered traffic growth. And Sofia saw air baltic, 4th ryanair jet, more easyjet flights and new wizz routes. I hope Podgorica will get Sofia’s success with the concession, unlike Athens which became very expensive and Ryanair reduced traffic. And for every airport is good to have ryanair.
ReplyDeleteGenerally, I agree. But you should bear in mind Sofia has +2 million inhabitants and Podgorica 10 times less. So, SOF model, yes, absolutely, but it can't result in same growth and same numbers
DeleteATH did not have the need to subsidize FR in favor of the other 60-70 airlines serving it.
DeleteSo FR after screaming and crying for a bit continued to serve and expand out of ATH while paying the same fees that everybody else does.
ATH last year had 31.8 million pax, a 13% increase and in January this year it is growing by 14.5%.
Some airports and markets are strong enough that they do not need to drop their trousers and bend over for Martin O'Leary.
@Anon 14:23 , so true
Delete+ 1000
Anon 14:23
DeleteYes, you are partially right, but Ryanair cut base from 4 to 2 jets. Ofc, Ryanair is the only airline screaming how Greeks are ruining their tourism with these high fees. Neither, Wizz nor ezy screamed, but these airlines are also fine with paying higher fees as long as they fill up planes. Ofc Athens will be completely fine even with only wizz and ezy, having also Aegean with their huuge traffic, plus American carriers.
^ According to Wiki FR serves from ATH 25 destinations, 15 of which are year round.
DeleteIf they can achieve that with only two aircraft good job to them.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Athens_International_Airport#Airlines_and_destinations
Don't forget another important factor, both ATH and SOF face minimal competition from other airports.
DeleteSOF's biggest competitor is INI... lol There is only Plovdiv with minimal air service between Sofia and the coast. It's a similar scenario with ATH. Their next real competition is SKG. All those visiting most of continental Greece, tourists, cruise traffic... are all directed to ATH.
ATH be getting flights to Los Angeles, Erbil, Muscat, Charlotte, Baku etc this year I don't think they care a lot about Ryanair..
ReplyDeleteI wish them Incheon. Hope that TAV will loose.
ReplyDelete+1
DeleteNo TAV, hopefully one of the other two will win.
ReplyDelete