Prague Airport wants to offer land for hotels, parking houses, congress centres, clinics or sports facilities to private companies. But for such a move, it needs a change in the law on the ownership of Prague-Ruzyně Airport. The airport is preparing the amendment to the law, which will allow the establishment of joint ventures with private companies, in cooperation with the Ministry of Finance, the sole shareholder of Prague Airport.
“In order to use our land efficiently, we have initiated the process of amending the 2009 law on airport ownership. It stopped the privatisation of the airport and says that all the company’s property must be owned by the state,” said Jiří Pos, chairman of the board of Prague Airport. “We are trying to divide the airport into what is a capital-L airport and residual land and real estate, which would be subject to a looser property disposal regime,” he added.
It was reported the land that the amendment may free up is not intended for airport operations and is in close proximity to the airport. With private partners, the airport could then build and operate or lease space with services for passengers or employees of companies operating at the airport. “It would be more advantageous for us to have a free hand and look for partners in the market. Given the high investments we are going to make in the airport infrastructure, we do not want to bear the burden of investing in these projects, in which we also do not have sufficient know-how,” Pos added.
The airport did not want to specify the location and value of the land that could be offered to private investors. According to unnamed sources, the land at the airport could be worth units of billions to tens of billions of crowns.
Part of the analyses currently being made is a plan for the redevelopment of the land belonging to the airport. “Specifically, this may include, for example, the possibility of exchanging some of the land owned by the airport, which is further away from the airport terminals and areas, for land that the airport does not own but is necessary for its operation and development,” Filip Běhal, spokesman for the Ministry of Finance.
Source: E15.cz and CTK
