Russia. Northern Capital Gateway LLC
| Date of agreement: | 28 Apr 2010 |
|---|---|
| Country: | Russia |
| Customer: | Northern Capital Gateway LLC |
| Amount in EUR: | EUR 50 million |
| Maturity: | 15 years |
| NACE sector / loan type: | Construction |
Project
The 15-year-maturity loan totalling EUR 50 million has been signed for the reconstruction and expansion of the Pulkovo Airport in St. Petersburg. The project includes the construction of a new international passenger terminal and the refurbishment of the existing domestic passenger terminal and related facilities.
The project will be carried out on the basis of a public-private partnership (PPP) agreement between JSC Pulkovo Airport, the City of St. Petersburg and the borrower company Northern Capital Gateway LLC , a consortium which includes Russian VTB Group, German Fraport AG and Horizon Air Investment SA, part of Greece’s Copelouzos group. The project’s financial advisor is VTB Capital.
As a result of the project, the airport’s capacity is expected to grow up to 14 million passengers a year. Its service level is to comply with the IATA Level C requirements, which is to be maintained until the end of the concession period in 2039 when the traffic is expected to increase to 26 million passengers.
The PPP agreement was signed on 30 October 2009 after the City of St. Petersburg had conducted a tender for the right to operate the Pulkovo Airport for a period of 30 years.
The construction is planned to be completed by the end of 2013. The total project costs, including the financing costs during the construction, are estimated to reach approximately EUR 1.19 billion, of which 60% will be financed with loans.
Besides NIB, the main financiers will be the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the Eurasian Development Bank, Vnesheconombank and the Black Sea Trade and Development Bank (the IFIs). Syndicated B-loans arranged by the IFC and the EBRD will be attracted from commercial banks.
The Pulkovo airport, fully owned by the city of St. Petersburg, is the only civil airport in the city and is the 4th largest airport in Russia in terms of traffic (6.76 million passengers in 2009).
Sustainability summary
The key environmental issues associated with the construction and operational activities of the airport include discharges to water, emissions to air, noise and waste management. The project is foreseen to improve considerably the airport’s emissions to air and discharges to water. The project does not require land acquisition or relocation of people. Furthermore, the project will have to comply with an Environmental Action Plan that is defined by the Social and Environmental Requirements, which are specified by the financing institutions involved. The problem with noise has been taken into consideration and will be included in the requirements.
