A consortium of Fraport, Russian state bank VTB and Greek Horizon Air Investments has been named preferred bidder for Russia's Pulkovo airport, according to a Reuters report.
The consortium beat bids by aluminium tycoon Oleg Deripaska's Basic Element in partnership with Singapore's Changi airport and another group led by Flughafen Wien and Leader, a local investment house founded by Gazprom.
Fraport said it expected a 30-year concession contract to develop, modernise and operate the airport near St Petersburg to be signed by the end of this year.
"We are optimistic to be awarded the contract following the final negotiations," the German airport operator's chief executive Wilhelm Bender said.
Pulkovo handled 7.1 million passengers in 2008, compared with 53.5 million at Fraport's main airport in Frankfurt. The consortium plans to invest US$1.8 billion to build by 2013 an airport terminal capable of serving 17.5 million passengers a year, which could be increased to 22 million.
Construction of the terminal will be financed partly through debt, said VTB chief executive Andrei Kostin.
VTB, Russia's second-biggest lender, will get the controlling stake in the consortium's managing company and the rest will go to Fraport and Horizon Air Investments. Fraport said it would hold 35.5 percent.
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