EC approves 5.8M euro further Bulgarian state aid for Bourgas, Varna airports
The European Commission said on February 9 that it has approved 5.8 million euro in Bulgarian state aid aimed at supporting the Bourgas and Varna airports in the context of Russia’s war against Ukraine.
Bulgaria’s state aid takes the form of deferring the payment of the concession fees owed by Fraport Twin Star Airport Management, which holds the concession for the two airports.
This is the second time that the Commission has allowed state aid for the two airports in recent years, with another deferral of payments worth 4.4 million euro approved in August 2020, due to the economic impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The EC said that the state aid to airports was meant to “address the liquidity shortages that they are facing due to a decrease in operations following the closure of the Ukrainian airspace, as well as of the European airspace to Russian aircraft, by reducing the costs borne by the airport operator.”
Fraport Twin Star Airport Management is a subsidiary of Fraport AG, the German operator of Frankfurt Airport and a number of other airports worldwide. It was awarded the 35-year concession for the Varna and Bourgas airports in 2006 and agreed a five-year extension last year.
(Varna Airport photo: varna.bg)
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