TURKEY. In a major coup leading Turkish duty free retailer Setur Duty Free, part of the Setur Service Turistik Group, has captured the 20-year duty free contract at Istanbul’s second airport, Sabiha Gökçen International.
Setur Duty Free confirmed the news to The Moodie Report, calling it a “major development” for the company.
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Sabiha Gökçen Airport: GMR Group and its partners have big plans to develop Istanbul’s second airport |
In March this year GMR Group led a consortium to win a 20-year contract to develop Sabiha G̦k̤en International Airport (SGIA). GMR controls 40% of the consortium along with partners Limak Insaat Sanayi San Ve Tic A.S Turkey (Limak Р40%) and Malaysia Airports Holdings Berhad (MAHB Р20%).
The consortium will operate the existing terminals at SGIA. It will also construct a new integrated domestic and international terminal capable of handling 10 million passengers per annum. The new terminal will house 4,500sq m of duty free space – 3,300sq m in Departures and 1,200sq m in Arrivals – said Setur. The existing international terminal building has 324sq m in Departures and 71sq m in Arrivals.
Setur, which operates duty free outlets at İstanbul Atatürk International Airport as well as various border checkpoints, plus ports and inflight shops, will make an infrastructure investment of €10 million in the stores. The product portfolio at İstanbul Sabiha Gökçen Duty Free, operated by Setur, will include wine and spirits, tobacco, fragrances, cosmetics, fashion accessories and electronics.
“We are glad to work with one of Turkey’s most distinguished business establishments,” said Yetik Mert, CEO of Istanbul Sabiha Gökçen International Airport Investment Development and Operation, speaking at the signing of the agreement. “Setur is a leading company in duty free retail operations, with a service record of almost 50 years,” he added. “I have every confidence that Setur’s service quality will help enhance the passenger experience at İstanbul Sabiha Gökçen, and thus contribute to our efforts to become a leading airport not only in Turkey, but also at a global level.”
Setur Servis Turistik General Manager Üstün Özbey expressed his delight at winning the tender and the opportunity of a 20 year-long partnership with the consortium. He said that Setur’s experience of almost 50 years in duty free operations, combined with the vision of its new partner, would create a first-class environment for duty free shopping.
As we reported previously, the new terminal should be completed by 2009, a year ahead of schedule. Currently SGIA has a domestic terminal with a passenger capacity of 500,000 and an international terminal with a passenger capacity of 3 million annually.
At the end of the 20-year concession period, the airport is expected to handle around 35-40 million passengers and 700,000 tonnes of cargo per annum. SGIA is expected by then to have world-class infrastructure and facilities offering good connectivity to all parts of Turkey and overseas.
Sabiha Gökçen was launched as the second International Airport of Istanbul in 2001 after the existing Istanbul Atatürk Airport reached saturation point. Since its inception the airport has recorded a growth of 80% in passenger numbers.
About SGIA’s new terminal
The terminal and its facilities will provide a total covered area of 320,000sq m and will have 96 check-in counters, 30 online check-in counters, a total of 32 X-ray units and a two-storey VIP terminal. There will also be a three-storey car park with a capacity of about 5,350 vehicles (4,500 indoors and 850 outdoors). A hotel with 60 rooms, adjacent to the terminal, will be built for flight crews, transit passengers and others.
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