The idea that the Republika Srpska Airports, i.e. Banjaluka Airport, should be left to the management of the concessionaire is becoming more and more certain. After the visit of the Vansi company earlier this year, a business proposal arrived in Banja Luka from Belgrade.
Confirmation for this comes from the Minister of Transport and Communications of the Republika Srpska, Nedeljko Čubrilović, who stated that the Belgrade Airport sent a proposal for the operation of the Airport in Banja Luka.
In an interview with Glas Srpska, Čubrilović explained that a proposal was received from the Belgrade Nikola Tesla Airport to “solve” matters at the Republika Srpska Airports.
“Belgrade Airport made an exceptional model and in the conversation with them we saw that they can, with their experience and knowledge, help in modeling and preparing our airport for a possible concession or something else,” said Čubrilović.
In June, representatives of the company Vansi (VINCI Airports), which manages Nikola Tesla Airport in Belgrade, visited the airports in Mahovljani and Banjaluk. The delegation was headed by the director for the USA, Northern and Eastern Europe and Southeast Asia, Emanuel Menanto.
The Prime Minister of the Republika Srpska Radovan Višković then confirmed that there is an idea to lease the Banjaluka Airport under a concession in a public-private partnership arrangement with a foreign company.
When asked by the media about whether they plan to submit an offer to take over the Banja Luka airport, Vansi said that they do not want to comment on this topic for the time being.
France’s Vance is the leading private airport operator in the world, managing the operations of more than 50 airports in 12 countries in Europe, Asia, North and South America.
In March 2018, they took over the Nikola Tesla Airport in Belgrade, that is, reached an agreement on the concession of the Belgrade airport for 25 years. The contract includes financing, development through construction and reconstruction, then maintenance and management of the airport’s infrastructure.
Reduced subsidy even though the Republika Srpska Airports operated at a loss
With the rebalancing of the Republika Srpska budget for 2023, the subsidy to the public company Airports of the Republika Srpska was reduced from 2.2 million BAM to 1,123,000 BAM.
The company Aerodromi Republika Srpska operated with a deficit of more than half a million BAM last year, while the Airport in Banja Luka (the only airport in the RS) recorded a record number of flights and passengers.
In 2022, the company achieved revenues of 6,096,772 BAM, including a subsidy from the RS Government of 2.2 million BAM and expenses of 6,680,498 BAM, eKapija reports.
