Decision to concede Chisinau Airport is not appropriate, expert

The Chisinau International Airport is a giant enterprise that should generate incomes and provide services of a high quality to passengers. The Cabinet’s decision to concede it is not the most correct one, said economic analyst Gheorghe Costandachi, quoted by Info-Prim Neo. “What do they want to change? A new monopolist will appear instead of the current one. But who will be this monopolist and what will be the real intentions of those who will win the concession contest?” asked the analyst. Gheorghe Costandachi considers that when a monopolist is replaced by another one, we cannot be sure that the plane tickets will grow cheaper. “The airport taxes will not be lower than now because those who will invest money will want to recover the investments first of all. We may witness a gradual reduction in the prices of plane tickets over the next 15-25 years, after the investments are recouped. This way, the prices of plane tickets will start to decrease in Moldova in about 30 years,” he stated. According to Gheorghe Costandachi, there are solutions to deal with the situation at the airport. “One of them is to restructure this economic entity. At least 50 companies should appear in its place, which would be able to compete between them. This solution would ensure healthy competition, which reveals those who provide the best prices and benefits. In this case, space will be freed for all the investors, including foreign ones. When all the countries overcome monopoles, Moldova sets precedents that are not in line with the criteria and principles of a functional market economy,” said the analyst. He also said that a real chance for the Moldovan civil aviation market to be transformed into a modern one existed in 1994. US$110 million was provided for 20 years, at an interest rate of 1.2% annually, with a grace period of 5 years, for reconstructing the airport and the entire infrastructure. US$265 million was also offered for renewing the aircraft, in leasing, for a 15-year period. In the Moldovan-Romanian-American Investment Forum, Minister of Economy Valeriu Lazar said the Chisinau International Airport may be conceded by the end of the first half of 2013. The concession of the airport for a period of 30-50 years is one of the priorities of the Moldovan Government’s privatization plan that refers to state-owned companies. An international consultancy company is now making a feasibility study at the airport. After the business plan is devised, in several weeks the Government will announce the contest that will last by this yearend.