New terminal of Zvartnots airport to accommodate 2m-3m passengers a year

YEREVAN, July 27. /АRКА/. The new arrivals and departures terminal of Yerevan’s Zvartnots International Airport will accommodate between 2 million and 3 million passengers a year, Artem Movsisian, the head of the Armenian Civil Aviation Department (ACAD), told journalists on Friday.

Some $160 million will be invested in the construction of the new terminal. The construction began in early 2008 and according to the project, the building will start operating in late 2011. “The airport is the main and important gateway to Armenia, and the country’s president keeps an eye on the construction process,” Movsisian said. He said that the construction of high quality. “The concessionaire wants to make the Armenian airport one of the most attractive ones in the world; I hope he can do that,” Movsisian added.

Armenian Economy Minister Nerses Yeritsian said that this ambitious project will allow meeting the demand for the 10 to 15 years to come, also when taking into account the projected number of the visitors as the airport’s design allows expanding its functions. “This is a serious investment program that attracts large international financial companies that, in turn, could bring investments into other fields of the Armenian economy,” Yeritsian added.

The total area of the new terminal will be 34,000 sq. m. to include passenger check-ins, stores and restaurants as well as a new large arrivals section. The new building will have a new two-level parking lot on 20,000 sq. m. for 600 vehicles. A green lawn will be on top the parking lot.

The previous phase of the construction of the arrivals and departures hall, built in 2004-07, cost $84 million.

Armenia International Airports, CJSC, runs the Zvartnots International Airport under the 30-year concessionary management agreement given by the Armenian government in 2001. American International Airports of Eduardo Eurnekian, an Argentine of Armenian origins, owns the company.-0-