Budapest airport capacity to face strain soon-KPMG

Passenger traffic at Budapest's only international airport will rise above 11 million a year by 2010 from around 6.5 million in 2004, KPMG's Andrea Sartori told a conference. This is largely because budget airline traffic is forecast to rise to 4 million from just under 1 million.

"Budapest will have difficulty taking all of that extra pressure in such a short time and some low cost carriers may have to look for other alternatives," Sartori said.

But Budapest Airport, the operator of the capital's only international airport, intends to expand capacity and promised a new terminal by 2009, which would take pressure off.

The airport will also open its refurbished Terminal 1 in the summer which will have capacity to serve 2.5 million passengers a year, Balazs Bella, the deputy chief executive of Budapest Airport, told the conference.

Budapest Airport expects passenger numbers to rise 18 percent this year after last year's increase of around 30 percent.

Hungary's government plans to privatise Budapest Airport later this year. Copenhagen Airports said earlier on Wednesday that it is interested in bidding for Budapest Airport.

Source: Reuters