Vladimir Bolya
In June 2025, the government approved a draft law that envisages the transfer of the Marculeşti airport to the management of the Chisinau airport. This will allow coordinating their activities and directing investments in modernization.
The goal is to turn Marculeşti Airport into a modern, competitive aviation hub. There is an increased demand for passenger air transportation in Moldova. The Chisinau airport is clearly overloaded.
The legislative initiative to modernize the airport was proposed by the Ministry of Infrastructure and Regional Development in cooperation with the Public Property Agency. The realization of the project will not require money from the state budget, because the necessary funds will come from the Chisinau airport. In fact, it will be a single enterprise.
As stated by Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Infrastructure and Regional Development Vladimir Bolia, the Marculesti airport is a prospect of cheaper tickets for passengers. And the increase of cargo transportation. It is no longer possible to expand the Chisinau airport to serve cargoes. After investments in Marculesti, this airport will be able to receive charter passenger flights. The whole process will take one or two years.
In January 2025, the Public Property Agency announced the preparation of a project for the merger of two airports – Chisinau and Marculesti (through takeover). Investments in the airport of Marculesti should amount to at least 4.1 million euros, the main investor – Chisinau Airport.
Marculesti International Airport was registered as an enterprise in January 2004. It continues to be a state-owned enterprise and is under the jurisdiction of the Moldovan Public Property Agency. The share of the state is 100%. The governing body is the Board of Directors, headed by Vadim Cortac.
According to the Agency, the authorized capital of Marculeşti airport amounts to 377.989 million lei. The return on assets for 2023 is minus 0.07; the annual turnover amounted to 26.279 million lei. The average salary of the airport staff is 6890 lei per month. The number of employees is 75.
The runway is in working condition. Airplanes fly, but they are relatively few. Therefore, during the last period, the airport has recorded a net loss every year:
- 2020 – 20.68 million lei;
- 2021 – 10.479 million lei;
- 2022 – 14.442 million lei;
- 2023 – 18,025 million lei.
Financially, the performance of the Chisinau airport looks much better, this enterprise is profitable, and over the last year, due to the increase in the flow of passengers (at the expense of citizens from Ukraine), the revenues have increased dramatically.
Chisinau Airport, 2023:
- Sales revenue – 674.264 million lei;
- Net profit – 211,196 million lei.
2024:
- Revenue from sales – 941.623 million lei;
- Net profit -336,427 million lei.
The significant profit generated by the Chisinau airport and the project of merging the two state-owned enterprises create the basis for the possible realization of plans to increase the number of cargo flights and launch passenger flights from the Marculeşti airport.
