Avinor is to expand the area after the passport control at Oslo Airport, which it says will provide a significantly better service to people travelling to and from countries outside the Schengen Area.
Construction work starts in early October this year and the expansion will be completed in the second quarter of 2022.
The total budget for the extension is NOK 3.3 billion and is financed by Avinor. The ground works will start in the fourth quarter of 2018.
Avinor owns and operates Norway’s main airport, Oslo Airport, which welcomes about 25 million travellers per year.
Chief executive officer, Dag Falk-Petersen said: “This expansion is important for developing Oslo Airport as an international hub. It will provide increased capacity and improve conditions for our passengers and airlines, as well as improving the framework conditions for Norwegian travel, tourism and business – which is an important part of Avinors strategy.”
The current capacity of the area for traffic outside of the Schengen Area is 5.5 million passengers per year, and following the expansion it will be approximately eight million.
Falk-Petersen added: “In recent years, traffic to and from countries outside of the Schengen Area has experienced considerably greater growth than traffic within it.
“It is absolutely essential that we facilitate this traffic by building good and suitable infrastructure. It will increase Norway’s competitiveness and provide considerable economic benefits.”
Airport director, Øyvind Hasaas said after six years of building the new Oslo Airport, it has learned a great deal about how to simultaneously build and operate an airport.
He added: “The knowledge we have gained will be applied to this expansion project. We should be able to achieve this without there being any noticeable impact on travellers.”
There will be a total of 14 aircraft parking spaces, four of which will be flexible gates that can handle traffic from areas both inside and outside the Schengen Area. The extension will provide a total area of 39,700 square metres for travellers to countries outside the Schengen Area.
“The current area will be extended, with new aircraft parking spaces that are suitable for larger planes as well as new commercial areas. In total, this will give us the capacity necessary to be a top European airport for travellers, airlines and other partners,” said Hasaas.
The expansion also includes adaptations for US pre-clearance, but a prerequisite is a binding participation from relevant airlines and a bilateral agreement between the US and Norway.
