Katowice Airport announces investment program for 2024-2028

central terminal.Credit: Katowice Airport

Upper Silesia Aviation Group (GTL SA) has announced the Katowice Airport Investment Program from 2024 to 2028. The plan covers expansion of all airport areas, including passenger, aircraft maintenance and cargo. Additionally, GTL SA plans to develop his fourth area in the form of an intermodal goods and fuel distribution hub with rail siding connections. The largest and most expensive project planned in the 2024-2028 investment program is the construction of a central passenger terminal.

The passenger area expansion concept was created in collaboration with Arup, an international company that employs 18,000 engineers, designers, planners and consultants in 90 offices around the world. Arup was founded in 1946. The company specializes in preparing complex infrastructure projects. The company has been based in Poland since 1998 and is especially responsible for planning the development of the airport for about a year. It accounts for 85% of the country’s air traffic.

Important investment plans.Credit: Katowice Airport

Passenger traffic forecast

The starting point for preparing the passenger transport infrastructure development concept was the new traffic forecast for Katowice Airport until 2040, developed by the GTL SA team and validated by Arup. Forecasts suggest that around 7.5 million passengers will use Katowice Airport’s aviation network in 2028, and 10 million passengers in 2033. In the latest air traffic forecast for Poland (2022-2040), published in September 2023, the Civil Aviation Authority (Urząd Lotnictwa) states: Cywilnego predicts that Katowice Airport will be one of his three regional airports in Poland handling more than 10 million passengers a year by 2040.

Both the forecasts prepared by GTL SA and those presented independently by the Civil Aviation Authority indicate that a significant expansion of Katowice Airport infrastructure is required in order to be able to comfortably handle the increased passenger traffic. Masu.

Central passenger terminal, transfer center and new road system

The most important part of the investment program is the construction of a central passenger terminal covering an area of ​​49,000 square meters.²; It will be equipped with a jet bridge and will be connected to the “Pižovice Rotnisco” station (Katowice Airport) by a tunnel. The new terminal will be built to the east of the existing passenger terminal, in an area that is home to the oldest civilian portion of the airport, built since the 1960s.

Central terminal tunnel station.Credit: Katowice Airport

The central passenger terminal will have two floors. On the ground floor there is a check-in area and arrival hall. The central security checkpoint, immigration checkpoint, and departure hall will be located on the +1st floor.

The new terminal will be connected to the “Pižovice Rotnisco” station (Katowice Airport) via a 270-meter-long tunnel. A bus transfer center will be located between the central terminal and the railway station.

A new road network will be constructed in front of the central passenger terminal, with new entry/exit gates and a kiss-and-fly area.

The first part of the central passenger terminal will be put into service in 2028, bringing the total area of ​​terminal infrastructure at Katowice Airport to 83,000 m.², can handle approximately 8 million passengers per year in comfortable conditions. GTL SA plans to continue expanding the terminal in the future, so that by 2032 the area of ​​terminal infrastructure will be 96,000 m.², can reach a throughput of 10 million passengers per year. After 2032, if such a need arises, the central terminal will be expanded eastward in a modular manner, with the throughput of the entire terminal infrastructure reaching 12 million passengers per year in the first phase and 15 million passengers per year in the second phase. of passengers could be reached.

Expansion of outdoor parking lot/multi-story parking lot

As passenger traffic is expected to increase, the need for parking spaces will also increase. Currently, there are approximately 2 parking spaces in the Katowice Airport parking lot. 5.5 parking spaces. GTL SA plans to build approximately 8,000 new parking spaces in the near future, of which 6.5,000 will be located in outdoor parking lots. As part of the investment program, a multi-storey car park with an initial capacity of 1,500 cars will be built by 2028. The building will be located near the new roundabout, which will open in June 2023. It is connected to the central terminal via a glazed path.

Hangar 4, Cargo Terminal 2

An H4 hangar is planned to be constructed between the H3 hangar and the PANSA air traffic control tower. The building will be the same as his H3 hangar. Its surface will be approximately 10mm. 9.2 thousand m². Two bays will be the focal point of the building, allowing for the operation of aircraft as large as the Airbus A321neo.

A second cargo terminal will be built in the southeast cargo area of ​​the airport. The planned area of ​​the building is approximately 200 square meters. 10,000m^2. After the opening of the second cargo terminal, the annual throughput of Katowice Airport’s cargo terminal infrastructure will increase to approximately $100 billion. 75 thousand tons.

Construction of intermodal goods and fuel distribution hub with rail siding connections

The investment site is located to the southeast of the airport. The investment will center on unloading railway sidings that will allow for the loading and unloading of goods and fuel. It is adjacent to three 1000 m3 containers and two unloading stands for fuel trucks. Three stands with refueling pumps for aviation fuel trucks will be installed in the hub’s restricted area of ​​the airport. In addition, a railway siding will be constructed to connect Katowice Airport with the Central Railway Line via railway line 182 Zawierce-Tarnowskie Gori.

Intermodal goods and fuel distribution hub.Credit: Katowice Airport

“Construction of an intermodal goods and fuel distribution hub with rail siding connection at Katowice Airport” received a grant from the European Union under the “Connecting Europe” Facility (CEF) Military Movement 2021-2027 Ta. Support can account for up to 50% of eligible costs. This infrastructure is expected to be in service by June 2026 at the latest.

New Airport Rescue and Fire Building, new facilities for the airport’s traffic and operations departments

Construction of the central passenger terminal will require the Airport Rescue and Fire Fighting (ARFF) unit to be relocated to a new location. As a result, GTL SA planned the construction of a new crisis management center, with the airport rescue and firefighting building as its central point. Located between taxiways Alpha, Echo 2, Delta and Hotel 4. The project estimates that the building area will be approximately 200 square meters. 1,7000m².

Operational transportation of new facilities.Credit: Katowice Airport

Additionally, the construction of a multi-level parking garage will require the relocation of the airport’s transportation and operational departments. The new infrastructure for these departments will be built on a plot located in the south-eastern part of the airport, with at their disposal the equipment used to maintain the airport’s surfaces and grass areas, especially in summer and winter. -Icing aprons, composite products, and fuel delivery hubs.

Financing the Katowice Airport Investment Program from 2024 to 2028

The estimated total cost of the Katowice Airport Investment Program from 2024 to 2028 is approximately $1,000. PLN 1.5B including PLN 950M for the construction of the central passenger terminal. GTL SA plans to finance the project from its own funds, commercial credits, capital increases and European Union grants.

“We are preparing a complex program to expand the infrastructure of Katowice Airport, with emphasis on the diversity of infrastructure that will be provided as part of it. It is to strengthen the airport in all areas of activity: maintenance, air cargo, etc. Thanks to support from the European Union, we will also start a new area in the form of an intermodal goods and fuel distribution hub.

The investments proposed in this program, if realized, will help meet the growing demand for passenger transport as well as for contractors responsible for aircraft maintenance and cargo transport. New infrastructure also means more employees. We estimate that by 2030, approximately 8,000 people will work in airport businesses and state agencies.

Katowice Airport is one of the Silesian Voivodeship’s most valuable assets. We therefore want its role on the map of European airports to become even greater, benefiting the economy of the province and its residents. Our dynamic expansion will help us achieve that goal. This program is ambitious, but I am confident that it will be completed. Our strength is our experienced staff. Over the past 15 years, our team has successfully completed more than 40 of his investments, including the construction of a new runway at Katowice Airport,” said Arthur, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Upper Silesian Aviation Group (GTL SA).・Mr. Tomasik says. The company that manages Katowice Airport.

“Katowice Airport is one of the three most dynamically expanding regional airports in Poland. We have been cooperating with GTL SA for many years. Our biggest joint project is the construction of a new passenger terminal. This is the concept.

Katowice Airport has long ago reached critical mass as a medium-sized regional port, and further expansion through “budget” operations no longer makes sense. Katowice Airport requires a modern terminal with the capabilities and flexibility to respond to dynamic and often unpredictably changing traffic conditions. At the same time, resources must be carefully managed with sustainable development in mind. Therefore, the new terminal will be integrated with the activated organization of Terminal B. Although the task was difficult, we believe it was worth the effort and that the airport’s passengers and employees will be satisfied with its accomplishment.

Katowice Airport is an example of an airport that proactively responds to the needs of corporate customers, airlines, maintenance and cargo operators, and first and foremost passengers,” says Ireneusz Kołodziej from Arup.