TAV opens new airport terminal in Kazakhstan’s Almaty

ALMATY

TAV Airports, a member of Groupe ADP, has completed a $200 million investment in Kazakhstan’s economic and cultural capital Almaty.

The first passengers arrived at the new terminal on June 1 from London, the company said in a statement, adding that the new terminal increases the airport's annual passenger capacity to more than 14 million.

Almaty Airport served 6.4 million passengers in 2019 and it was among the fastest to recover from the global pandemic, according to the statement.

In 2023 it welcomed 9.5 million passengers, marking a 32 percent increase year-on-year.

In addition to flag carrier Air Astana, Scat Airlines uses Almaty as a base.

TAV Airports holds an 85 percent stake in the SPV, which acquired Almaty Airport in 2021 for a total sum of $422 million. The co-investor is the Kazakhstan Infrastructure Fund, managed by VPE Capital.

TAV secured a total of $450 million to finance the acquisition and the investment. The financing package is spearheaded by the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and the European Bank of Reconstruction and Development (EBRD).

Almaty Airport served 98,621 tons of cargo in 2023 — a historical high — and expects further growth in 2024, according to the statement.

“The new terminal will create capacity to support organic growth while we work to attract new airlines,” said Serkan Kaptan, the CEO of TAV Airports.

In just three years, the number of destinations almost doubled, while the number of passenger airlines rose from 24 to 37 and cargo airlines from nine to 16, Kaptan noted.