Lithuania’s Parliament has approved a legislation package that will facilitate the concession of the country’s international airports as a PPP project. The new legislation, adopted on June 2, enables the launching of a bundled concession tender for Lithuania’s three international airports.

Lithuanian Airports operates a network of three international airports: Vilnius, Kaunas and Palanga. Combined, more than 50,000 flights serving over 4.2 million passengers (3.3 million in Vilnius, 0.74 million in Kaunas and 0.15 in Palanga) passed through the airports in 2015.

Additionally, the concessionaire will be expected to increase connectivity in all three airports, and to improve their infrastructure through financing strategic development projects and improving airport services.

Thanks to strong political consensus on the issue, the legislation passed through parliament quickly. Following its inception in the Government’s strategic committee, the legislation was worked on by the Lithuanian Parliament’s legal department, plus the audit, national security, and economy standing committees, before being green lighted during a Parliamentary voting session.

According to Invest Lithuania, a non-profit organization owned by the Ministry of Economy of the Republic of Lithuania whose principal mission is the attraction of foreign investment, the Lithuanian Parliament has moved on the right direction for enabling the airport concession to progress further.

The next step in the process will be the preparation of the tender documentation will now commence before the end of June, with an international consortium led by the aviation consultancy firm InterVISTAS providing consultation on the structuring and implementing of the tender.

Tadas Jagminas, Director of Project Management at Invest Lithuania, commented:

“This approval of the legislation for the special airport concession is yet another firm step towards the implementation of the Lithuanian airport concession, which will facilitate the further development of Lithuania’s airports. In addition to enabling a concession model for the airports to be followed, the legislative package will also help to create an investor friendly environment, particularly by providing operators with flexibility regarding the sub-letting of assets and autonomy in adjusting aviation fees.”