WBP NEWS
APA Issue 4, 2021
The latest news and views from ACI Asia Pacific’s World Business Partners.
NEW ALMATY BAGGAGE SYSTEM AWARDED TO ALSTEF GROUP Alstef Group has been awarded the contract to install the baggage handling system for the new international terminal at Almaty International Airport in Kazakhstan. Situated on the ancient trade route known as the ‘Silk Road’, the airport is owned and operated by TAV Airports who will invest $200 million to develop it into one of the biggest hubs in Central Asia – doubling its current capacity. The new baggage handling system will be capable of accommodating up to 2,400 bags per hour with the outbound baggage system consisting of 40 check-in conveyors and a screening and sortation system feeding four make-up carousels. The inbound system consists of three large reclaim carousels. The airport is scheduled to open in 2022 with expansion plans to grow the capacity according to demand. Alstef Group notes that it has worked with TAV Airports ever since installing a baggage handling system in Turkey’s former hub at Istanbul Atatürk Airport in the 1990s.
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“This project represents an exciting new step for the Alstef Group as we expand into Central Asia, working with a key partner to deliver a strategically located transport hub that will serve as a bridge between Asia and Europe,” said Philippe Hamon, Alstef Group’s sales director for airport solutions. TAV Airports’ procurement manager, Emin Sonmez, said: “We chose Alstef Group because they had the most co-operative and technically qualified bid during the tender. “Their bid fulfilled the entire requirements of the project, and they took time to understand the scope of work, and to develop the existing design to make the system more practical and economical.” As part of the largest airport management group globally, TAV Airports plans to promote Almaty and Kazakhstan as the business capital of the region. Kazakhstan leads Central Asia in economic growth and generates roughly 60% of the region’s GDP and, as a country with a rich cultural heritage and diverse tourism opportunities, TAV Airports plan to increase the connectivity of Almaty to the world.
