Alicante Airport could finally get its new runway as new budgets are approved
Aena has vowed to “expand” both Alicante and Valencia airports between 2027 and 2031
Alicante Airport, recently voted the best in Europe in its category of between 15 and 25 million annual passengers, will finally receive its long-promised upgrade and expansion in the next few years, according to Aena CEO Maurici Lucena.
Speaking at a shareholder’s meeting in Madrid this week, Mr Lucena promised that his company has set aside funds to “expand” both the Alicante and Valencia aerodromes from the 2027-2031 budgets, although he didn’t go into any more details.
The final plans, he said, will be revealed in “the coming weeks and months”.
Alicante Airport has been in desperate need of a new terminal and runway for years now and with air traffic increasing year after year, all of the airlines have made repeated requests for improvements. But Transport Minister Oscar Puente recently dashed hopes when he claimed that Alicante “does not need an expansion”.
According to Aena’s own figures, 2023 was the best year of all time for the Alicante-Elche Miguel Hernández Airport, with 15,747,678 registered passengers and an increase of 19.2% compared to the annual balance of 2022.
Valencia followed suit, with 9,948,141 registered passengers and a growth of 22.6% compared to 2022.
Mr Lucena said that Aena is “very seriously preparing” to respond to this “appreciable increase” in demand with a bigger budget, an announcement that has been welcomed by the Valencian employers’ association, which predicted a “tourism collapse” after the government denied Alicante its second runway earlier this year.
However, it looks as though Aena might have a fight on its hands as several political parties are vehemently against any expansion plans at either airport because of the implied impact on the environment, and several have vowed to “work to ensure that it does not materialise”.
Separate studies in the UK and the US have shown that airport expansion, and the ensuing increase in air pollution levels, lead to more respiratory problems, higher hospitalisation costs and even deaths.
For Aena though, there is no grey area, and both aerodromes will be overhauled over the next few years.
“I want to emphasise, to be clear, in the Valencian Community the Alicante-Elche and Valencia airports will be expanded,” Mr Lucena concluded.
Image: Enaire
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