The loan to Finavia co-finances the development of the main hub of Finland to alleviate peak congestion, cater for future growth in traffic and to improve passenger service standards. The future Helsinki Airport will have more space, better services and more digital innovations.
The investment will increase the capacity of the airport for the future. This is of big importance, as the international traffic in the one of Europe’s main gateways to Asia is estimated to grow at an average annual rate of over 4%.
EIB Vice-President Jan Vapaavuori said: “The European Investment Bank has made supporting strategic transport infrastructure one of its priorities. The Helsinki Airport is the key international gateway in Northern Europe and an important part of the Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T). We are therefore pleased to support Finavia in the Helsinki airport development, as its increased capacity will benefit both passengers and airline companies, maintaining strong competitive position of this hub.”
Kari Savolainen, CEO of Finavia, said: “Helsinki Airport’s geographical location is an undisputed asset. Flying via Helsinki means choosing the shortest and fastest route between Europe and Asia. It is predicted that air traffic between Asia and Europe will increase strongly in the coming years. In order to keep up with the international competition, we will be developing and improving the operations and services of Helsinki Airport even further. I am glad that the European Investment Bank has a strong belief in Helsinki Airport’s future and joins us to invest in the airport’s growth and its position as one of the leading transfer hubs in Europe”.
More precisely, this investment includes the extension of the terminal with two additional piers, the enlargement of the baggage handling systems (BHS) by 50 % and various associated landside and airside infrastructure as well as increase in apron capacity and wide-body aircraft bridges.
The EIB strongly supports job creation and the Helsinki airport extension programme is likely to result in an increase of up to 5000 new jobs.
This project is a continuation of the EIB’s successful cooperation with Finavia. Including the current operation, the EIB has provided four loans to Finavia, for instance for Finavia’s share of the Ring Rail Line project connecting centre of Helsinki with the airport. The EIB support makes the company’s financing more cost-efficient and extends the maturity profile of its debt.
Source: EIB's press release February 4, 2016
Read more about Helsinki Airport Development Programme
