Domodedovo Airport Goes on Sale After Nationalization
Moscow«s Domodedovo Airport is being sold after being confiscated as state revenue. The starting price is 132 billion rubles ($1.5 billion), and the airport»s debt is nearly 70 billion rubles ($790 million). The lot has even been posted online on a classifieds website, and the auction for the sale of the airport, which was seized in favor of the state, is set for 15:00 MSK on January 20.
Vitaliy Vantsev, a co-owner of Vnukovo Airport, is ready to become an investor in Domodedovo — he has spoken about this publicly. Who else might buy the hub, why it«s needed, and what it means for passengers — MSK1.RU correspondent investigated together with experts and the airport»s former owner.
What is happening with the airport
Businessman Anton Bakov, a former State Duma deputy who owned the airport in the 1990s, suggested that the nationalization and subsequent sale of Domodedovo is an opportunity for the state to «get money out of thin air.»
«It»s clear that in this case the price for such an asset will be appropriate. The starting $1.5 billion is, let«s say, a small price. Since 2011 [when the airport was valued at $5 billion], Moscow has not become poorer, so maybe someone will buy it cheap,» Bakov told MSK1.RU.
Civil aviation expert and editor-in-chief of Avia.ru portal Roman Gusarov recalled that the airport«s previous owners were moving money abroad, so the property was seized and assets frozen.
«All our airports have been transferred to private hands. The state retains the runway, navigation equipment — everything on the airfield, but not the passenger infrastructure. For an airport, a private investor is always more efficient than the state,» the expert says. «They will organize work better, earn more, and pay more taxes.»
According to him, the airport business is generally profitable, and Domodedovo is a «prime asset.»
Who will buy Domodedovo
Anton Bakov found it difficult to guess who would want to buy Domodedovo. He fully admits it could be a state structure.
«I would understand if an oligarch woke up and said, »I want to be the mistress of the sea.« But to come into such a broken trough, when you are already established in something, well, it»s a drastic change to your life and taking on new risks, which everyone already has plenty of,« the entrepreneur reasoned.
Aviation expert Roman Gusarov thinks differently. He says Domodedovo could be bought by «Novaport Holding,» «Airports of Regions,» or the «Aerodinamika» holding.
«Novaport Holding» is Russia«s largest network of regional airports. It manages 28 airports located across the country: from Kaliningrad to Magadan.
«Airports of Regions» is a holding company controlling 10 airports. They are located in Yekaterinburg, Samara, Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky (in Russia«s Far East), and other cities.
«Aerodinamika» is also a major holding managing three airports in the Krasnodar Territory.
«Sheremetyevo is unlikely, but the owners of Vnukovo have quite serious capabilities. If the Federal Anti-Monopoly Service (FAS) says there are no problems, Vnukovo will be admitted to the tender,» he added.
The executive director of the AviaPort agency, Oleg Panteleev, also does not believe Sheremetyevo«s owners are interested in buying.
«Sheremetyevo»s passenger traffic is greater than both competitors (Vnukovo and Domodedovo — Ed.) combined. If they buy Domodedovo, what will they use to fill the new asset? And this is despite Sheremetyevo operating at a load far from 100%. It«s more reasonable to attract airlines to themselves rather than split the business,» he said.
The interviewee considered Domodedovo«s starting price impressive and recalled the debt burden of 70 billion rubles ($790 million). He also suggested most potential bidders would not be able to complete the deal independently.
«A consortium could be formed, including a qualified airport operator, a financial institution, a fuel operator. One cannot rule out a turn of events where no bids are made at the proposed price, then we»ll have to wait for a new tender with a reduced starting price,« the interviewee said.
What will change for passengers
In Anton Bakov«s opinion, nothing will change for passengers, regardless of who becomes the airport»s new owner. Tickets, according to the entrepreneur, will become more expensive regardless, because everything around is rising in price.
At the same time, he acknowledges the risk of a «shake-up» at the airport and new staff having to adapt.
Aviation expert Roman Gusarov agrees that for passengers everything will remain the same. Oleg Panteleev thinks so too.
«For ordinary passengers, of course, it doesn»t matter who exactly buys it. The main thing is that the new owner manages to build relationships with airlines, not lose those the airport already works with, and better yet — attract new partners,« he summed up.
Russian aviation as a whole is going through turbulent times: sanctions, airspace closures, the search for new logistics chains, a focus on import substitution — all this leaves its mark on air travel. 2026 is unlikely to be simple for the passenger transportation market. Previously, we spoke with experts and found out what awaits Russian aviation in the new year and what will happen with ticket prices.
