Tbilisi Airport to Get New Terminal in 2017

A new USD 25 million terminal will be constructed at Tbilisi’s Shota Rustaveli International Airport as part of a major expansion project slated for completion in 2017, according to the airport’s managing company TAV Georgia.

"In 2015, we signed a new contract with TAV Georgia, according to which the company made a commitment to begin constructing a new terminal capable of accommodating 2 million passengers per year. More than USD 25 million will be invested in the new terminal’s construction,” said Dimitry Kumsishvili, Georgia’s Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development, at the groundbreaking ceremony for the future terminal.

The new terminal will cover more than 12,000 square meters and have the capacity to receive 3.25 million passengers per year.

Roughly 500 people will be employed to build the terminal.

The airport is currently implementing a costly and time-consuming project that aims to lengthen the runway, which will allow the airport to accommodate larger aircraft.

The project has provoked the ire of many Tbilisi residents and visitors to Georgia’s capital as the expansion is carried out during daylight hours, which forces the airport to be completely closed to air traffic from early morning to late evening.

Planners of the project have faced heavy criticism for having scheduled the expansion during the height of the country’s tourism season as it significantly hinders the airport’s ability to accommodate the flow of visitors.

The runway’s expansion works are to conclude on July 1.

Nicholas Waller