#Moldova - Chisinau Airport purchase may land Russian businessman #Goncharenko on World’s Forbes List

At present, it is no secret to anyone that the requirements of the modern world are not limited to increasing the level of complexity and the amount of information that almost every adult needs to operate on a daily basis. A significant and ever-increasing role today is played by the need to reduce the time costs associated with moving a large number of people over significant distances, writes Louis Auge.

The modern economic development model assumes that a person can live in one place, work in another, relax in the third and all these places can be at great distances from each other. There are few ways to overcome these distances, everyone knows about them, and all of them are based on the use of high-speed transport with the condition of convenient and quick access to it. The most common type of such transport is naturally air transport, which, in addition to high security, has the property of extreme flexibility in the formation of the route network, since it depends almost exclusively on the quantity and quality of the airfield infrastructure on the ground.

Chisinau Airport

Modern air traffic control technologies have a sufficient supply of traffic compaction, and therefore the forefront is the need to ensure convenient and quick access of a person to the nearest airport with a good route network map. For residents of Moldova, the main nearby airports are the airports of Chisinau, Iasi, Odessa, and Bucharest and Kiev airports can also be noted with the caveat that the distances to them are still significant. Chisinau, Iasi and Odessa airports can be considered direct competitors, as crossing the border does not significantly affect the accessibility to these airports.

The main advantage of Chisinau Airport is the developed route network of flights, good condition of the main roads leading to the airport, convenient parking, a well-developed visual image of the interiors of the main terminal, which allows spending time with an increased degree of convenience and comfort, as well as well-established passenger service procedures, allowing to reduce time spent in technological zones. If we talk about the designated region as a whole, in recent years there has been a steady growth trend in passenger traffic. And Chisinau Airport has not only not been lost in this company of airports, but is constantly increasing its advantage by expanding the route network, developing ground infrastructure, making structural adjustments and improving service technologies.

The last period associated with the transfer of the Chisinau airport to concession can be considered a turning point, since even taking into account the increased level of political and economic instability in the whole country, the concession company was able to demonstrate that the Chisinau International Airport can become a successful example in terms of infrastructure development, increase passenger comfort level, creating favorable conditions for airlines. For a relatively short period, the concessionaire, AVIA INVEST S.R.L. managed to modernize Chisinau Airport, turning it into a modern comfortable airport, which is a serious player in the airport services market in the region of Southeast Europe.

If we list the main infrastructural transformations of Chisinau Airport over the past period, it becomes clear that they were all aimed not so much at maintaining the infrastructure as at preparing and adapting it to modern and ever-increasing requirements dictated by the airport services market, taking into account the fact that the horizon of operational planning of activities applicable to such a market varies from three to 10 years.

So, over the past six years, AVIA INVEST S.R.L., in terms of modernizing the airport, has carried out the following landmark transformations:

- Expansion and modernization of the existing passenger terminal. The entire infrastructure of the terminal has been improved in order to maximize the comfort of passengers crossing its threshold. In particular, the arrival hall and sterile area were expanded, the number of registration desks for passenger service was increased, recreation areas for passengers with children were expanded, a modern, comfortable room for mother and child was equipped, a panel with multiple information screens was installed, etc. All this raised Chisinau Airport to a new excellent level of comfort, both for passengers and for seeing off and meeting guests.

Avia Invest pleasantly surprised passengers with improvements at Chisinau International Airport. Now passengers will be able to take advantage of the increased comfort of the waiting and departure area, which has expanded by more than 800 square metres. The total area of the departure area of the terminal now exceeds 2000 square meters. The waiting room is the place where passengers spend most of their time and that is why Avia Invest is constantly improving conditions, increasing comfort and expanding the spaces reserved for passengers.
The comfort zone on the second floor is equipped with soft chairs, provides perfect conditions and meets all the necessary requirements and modern technologies to create an atmosphere of a pleasant flight. Here, passengers can enjoy their favorite books using the electronic library, another project launched at the Airport earlier this year. The Bookmate application provides access to over 850 thousand books of various subjects in 12 languages of the world.

Another element of the terminal's modernization is the opening of a special security control point for transit passengers and the expansion of the transit corridor. This will allow you to separate the two flows of passengers and prevent the formation of queues at checkpoints. It should be noted the complete replacement of the ventilation system with a more powerful and modern one. The capabilities of the air conditioning system, covering the entire territory of the waiting room, were also increased.

- The construction of a multi-tiered parking lot with 800 parking spaces, with a total area of about 24 thousand square meters. This car park is, in a sense, the first successfully completed similar project in the Republic of Moldova, and;

- modernization of airfield infrastructure. This included the modernization of the apron, the commissioning of a new runway, which will be used during the reconstruction of the main runway, the modernization of the lighting infrastructure of the runway, the beginning of modernization and expansion of taxiways and the runway itself, the construction of a drainage system and other.

Thus, Avia Invest invested more than 6.5 million euros in the modernization of lighting, adapting the system to the highest, third category (CAT 3B), although the concession agreement did not provide for this.

Technical changes made by Avia Invest at the airport will increase the category from CAT 2 to CAT 3B. According to the standards of the International Civil Aviation Organization, the assignment of CAT 3B allows landing aircraft with horizontal visibility of 75 meters and vertical - 15 meters. This means that the technical equipment of the airport ensures flight safety even in difficult weather conditions. CAT 3B is assigned to the best airports in the world, including London Heathrow, JFK New York and Delhi Airport.

Modernization of the lighting system consists of a whole range of works. In particular, the concessionaire replaced more than 200 kilometers of cables, purchased the latest Hella-Induperm equipment and replaced all the necessary systems with the latest.

Achieving these strategic goals required significant investment. During this period, AVIA INVEST invested 1.697.0 million lei or €81.7m in the modernization of the airport.

All these investments have led to a significant improvement in the company's performance indicators. Among them, it is worth mentioning the increase in annual passenger traffic from 1.3 million in 2013 to 2.8 million in 2018 (or more than 2.2 times), and if you take into account that 15 years ago, in 2004 the passenger traffic amounted to only 420 thousand people, the growth was 6.7 times. The number of served destinations also increased from 30 in 2012 to 39 destinations in 2018; the number of aircraft operations (landing / take-off) increased from 17.555 operations in 2013 to 27.451 operations in 2018.

During the period of the concession enterprise, the amount of various taxes and payments paid to the state budget amounted to more than 834m lei.

During this period, the number of employees increased significantly from 585 in 2013 to 638 in 2018, despite the fact that about 100 employees were transferred to 3 companies to which some services were transferred on the basis of outsourcing.

Significantly during the concession period, the average salary for an enterprise increased from 11.3 thousand lei in 2013 to 17.1 thousand lei in 2018. The total salary fund amounted to more than 545m lei.

It is also worth mentioning that the development of the Chisinau Airport, including the development of its infrastructure component, being the basis for the direct development of air transportation services, also acts as a kind of locomotive in the development of related markets, such as the market for ground services, on-board catering services, cargo transportation services, air traffic control. also a construction market, a building materials market. The development of these related markets, in turn, triggers the processes of their transformation and growth, contributing to the growth of the whole segment of the economy of the Republic of Moldova related to air transportation.

It is also necessary to understand that the growing comfort and convenience provided to passengers by the Chisinau Airport plays an important role in shaping the overall impression for foreign passengers from staying in Moldova, including as tourists. For example, in the development of wine tourism, which has recently shown steady growth, it is difficult to overestimate the degree of comfort and convenience for passengers, since the airport, in fact, leaves the first and last impression of a foreign tourist who visited Moldova, and who, subsequently, forms a common, holistic view from the trip to our country. It can be noted that only the last event, 'Wine Day', held in October, according to some estimates, was visited by more than 9 thousand foreign tourists, most of whom arrived by air transport. It should be noted that at the same time, such tourism also, in turn, stimulates the hotel and restaurant business. The high and growing quality of services provided to tourists throughout their program of stay in our country naturally stimulates its further growth.

Chisinau Airport makes the journey of any tourist much more pleasant. Innovation and comfort of its terminal were awarded at a prestigious international competition. The design of the business lounge at Chisinau Airport, developed by ARCHFORM, won the Big See Tourism Award at the Creative Tourism festival in Slovenia. The award ceremony was held on October 17 in Ljubljana. The jury noted the innovativeness, literacy and originality of the design of the business lounge. A project developed by Archform designers complements and develops the sophisticated style of Chisinau International Airport. The uniqueness and maximum personal comfort offered to passengers flying through Chisinau Airport provide an excellent travel experience. Passengers get access to a buffet, a bathroom, soft and comfortable chairs, coffee tables, sockets and USB ports. Thanks to its spacious room, warm colors and lighting, this airport zone offers passengers the maximum level of comfort. Chisinau International Airport is a visiting card of the country and an active promoter of the Republic of Moldova as an international tourist destination. The Slovenian festival, in which Avia Invest also participated, is dedicated to originality and design and is a platform that provides an opportunity to evaluate, promote and mark achievements in Southeast Europe in this area. The 2019 edition was attended by 18 countries, including Moldova, Italy, Greece, Romania and Austria.

The airport is a "small town" with its own rules and atmosphere, today Chisinau International Airport connects a route network of over 40 destinations. Over the past few years, the Avia Invest concessionaire company has received many awards: as the most dynamically developing airport, as the largest investor in the development of the Airport. Chisinau Airport meets the highest modern requirements. The Avia Invest development strategy has been developed in full accordance with the best practices in the airline industry and the requirements for international airports. We are talking about the latest equipment, advanced technologies for baggage scanning and processing of received data (BHS handling systems), and a modern security system, which is a very important element for passenger convenience and comfort.

Thanks to perseverance, as I said earlier, we are aviation. I mean the fact that the result of large-scale investments was the fact that it was possible to attract the attention of significant players from the field of aviation, and in the end this led to great results. Chisinau Airport was nominated by the International Council of Airports for the Best European Airport Award 2018. This award is one of the most prestigious awards in world aviation, and it only makes the entire team proud of every step taken towards the modernization and development of the airport.

In 2018, Avia Invest represented Chisinau Airport and the Republic of Moldova at the most important aviation event in the world - the World Route Development Forum.

Thanks to the prizes received in recent years, as well as references to the most prestigious international competitions in the field of international aviation and tourism, Chisinau Airport can be considered one of the most competitive in the region.

Avia Invest continues to invest in things really important for the airport. According to all forecasts, the annual number of passengers in the short term will exceed 3 million people. The construction of a new terminal is about to begin. The new project also provides for the construction of a parking zone, which will fully meet the needs of passengers of the new terminal in parking spaces. In the future, further modernization of the remaining part of the runway, its most difficult part, the construction of a cargo terminal and other large-scale infrastructure projects, investments in which will amount to more than 115 million euros.

As the number of flights is constantly increasing, and a network of destinations is developing, there is the prospect that Chisinau Airport will become a bridge between Europe and Asia and become an international center for air transportation (speaking in aviation terminology, it will turn into a hub). Thus, passengers will receive profitable and diverse connecting flights.

At present, Chisinau Airport is a prosperous enterprise with a stable development trend and management aimed at continuous improvement of the quality and comfort of the services provided.

Based on the foregoing, we can conclude that the concession of the Chisinau International Airport is a successful example of a public-private partnership concluded in the Republic of Moldova, the main beneficiaries of which are both ordinary citizens and customers of the airport and the Republic of Moldova as a whole.

The composition of Avia Invest shareholders has changed many times over recent years. Since 2013, the company has been managed by Russian investors, and later there were rumors that the airport belonged to a Moldovan politician and businessman Ilan Shor.

After the change of the government in Chisinau, the English billionaire Nathaniel Rothschild has become the owner of the company, but in December of this year he returned the ownership to the previous owners, according to rumors this was due to the incompatibility of work with the pro-Russian government. Later, as it became known from the press, a major Russian businessman Andrey Goncharenko has become the owner of the airport.

Some attribute this to the fact that Russians decided to take a strategic object in Europe under their influence, others to a good business purchase. Not so much is known about Goncharenko, only that he is a major owner of real estate in London. According to experts, in case of all investments’ implementation, Chisinau Airport may become one of the most attractive hubs in its region and its cost will reach €3 billion, so this can enable Goncharenko to become one of the World’s Forbes List members.

Share this article: