Sofia: The Vasil Levski Sofia Airport project has secured EUR450 million in financing from international capital markets with a 22-year maturity, the airport's press center said on Thursday. The funds will be used for the construction of Terminal 3, whose building is scheduled to begin in the autumn of 2026, as well as for the modernization of the existing infrastructure.

According to Philippines News Agency, the planned investments will provide the necessary capacity for the airport's development over the next 30 years and will reinforce its role as Bulgaria's strategic gateway to Europe and the world. The financing is structured through a combination of bank lending and a bond issuance, marking the first bond issue for project financing of a public-private partnership project in Bulgaria to be issued on a regulated market, Euronext Dublin.

Leading international investors and financial partners are participating in the process, including the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development and UniCredit Group. Construction works on Terminal 3 are expected to continue for five years, until April 2031, which is also the set deadline for completion of the project.

The airport expansion is expected to provide 34 gates capable of handling 20 million passengers, half of whom will be served by the new Terminal 3. Once the new Terminal 3 is completed and ready to merge with Terminal 2, Terminal 1 is due to be closed.