Belgrade Airport to rebuild transformer station as terminal expansion increases electricity demand

Belgrade Nikola Tesla Airport is preparing to reconstruct its main transformer station as expansion of the terminal, aircraft stands and commercial facilities pushes electricity consumption beyond the capacity of its existing infrastructure.

The airport disclosed the planned reconstruction in its financial report, stating that development of the complex and construction of new facilities had increased electricity requirements beyond the level for which the current system was originally designed. A review commission has already issued a positive opinion on the preliminary design. The airport has not disclosed the planned capacity, investment value, financing structure or construction schedule for the transformer project.

Power infrastructure expands alongside airport capacity

The electricity system supports baggage handling, passenger processing, security equipment, airfield lighting, cooling and ventilation, retail operations and aircraft-servicing equipment at stands. A shortage of capacity or interruption to supply can therefore affect airport operations even when runway infrastructure remains operational.

Nikola Tesla Airport operates a closed internal electricity-distribution network under a licence issued by Serbia’s energy regulator. Belgrade Airport, the Vinci Airports subsidiary operating the facility under concession, manages medium- and low-voltage substations serving consumers throughout the airport complex. The transformer reconstruction comes as the airport continues a multi-year modernisation programme that has expanded the terminal by approximately 40,000 square metres, while adding gates, aircraft stands, commercial areas and a second runway. Since assuming operations in 2018 under a 25-year concession, Vinci has invested more than €366 million in the airport.

C pier expansion adds new electrical requirements

The current construction programme includes the C pier and associated apron. It will add three passenger-boarding-bridge gates and four aircraft stands, as well as approximately 5,350 square metres of additional terminal space. Apron construction is scheduled for completion by the end of 2026, after which testing and regulatory inspections are planned. Commissioning is expected by the end of March 2027.

The project includes fixed electrical connections for aircraft parked at stands, underground fuel infrastructure, apron lighting and navigation signals. Ground-power connections allow aircraft to shut down auxiliary engines while at gates, reducing fuel consumption, local emissions and noise while increasing the airport’s electricity load.

Separate work at Terminal 1 will create an international bus gate. When the current Terminal 1 and Terminal 2 projects are completed, the airport expects to have 37 gates. Commercial expansion is also adding electrical consumption through lighting, refrigeration, kitchens, ventilation and retail operations. The increased load makes the transformer station a necessary component of the broader capacity programme.

Passenger traffic continues to increase

Nikola Tesla handled 4.2 million passengers in the first half of 2026, following passenger growth of 8.8 per cent in the first quarter. Annual traffic reached almost 8 million passengers in 2023, compared with 6.2 million in 2019. During the same period, the airport’s network expanded from 72 destinations in 2019 to 116 in 2024, supported by the expansion of Air Serbia, low-cost airlines and new long-haul services. The summer 2026 network comprises 118 destinations. Air Serbia has continued expanding its European network and plans additional long-haul services, while foreign airlines have also increased capacity to Belgrade.

The airport’s location provides connections between western Europe, the Balkans, the Middle East and parts of Asia. Serbia’s position outside the European Union also allows Air Serbia to operate certain markets and traffic flows differently from carriers based within the EU. Rapid passenger growth, however, shortens the time available for infrastructure expansion. Additional terminal and gate capacity must be matched by sufficient electricity, fuel, baggage and wastewater infrastructure, with some supporting systems requiring longer design and permitting periods.

Solar and backup systems remain supplementary

Nikola Tesla operates a 1 MW solar power plant containing approximately 3,000 panels, commissioned in 2022. The installation generates around 1.13 GWh annually, equivalent to the annual electricity consumption of approximately 430 households. The airport has also converted most lighting to LED technology and installed solar-powered lighting in parking areas. A trigeneration plant produces electricity, heating and cooling, while natural gas has replaced older heavy-fuel boilers.

These measures have reduced emissions and dependence on purchased electricity but do not eliminate the need for additional transformer and grid capacity.

Solar generation is strongest during daylight hours and in summer, when cooling demand is also elevated, while production varies according to weather conditions and stops at night. Airport operations require continuous electricity availability. Battery storage could shift part of solar generation into evening periods and provide short-duration backup, but it would not replace sufficient transformer and grid capacity.

Critical airport systems already have uninterruptible power supplies and backup generators. Those systems are designed to preserve safety and essential functions during outages rather than economically power the entire terminal for extended periods. The transformer reconstruction therefore needs to address both additional capacity and redundancy, given the dependence of passenger processing, security systems and runway lighting on continuous power.

Concession structure will determine investment responsibility

Nikola Tesla operates under a structure in which Aerodrom Nikola Tesla, controlled by the Serbian state, remains the asset owner and monitors the concession agreement, while Belgrade Airport, controlled by France’s Vinci, operates and develops the airport under the long-term concession. The available information does not specify which party will finance the transformer reconstruction.

The allocation will depend on whether the project is considered a mandatory concession investment, an expansion resulting from subsequent traffic growth, or infrastructure outside the original concession programme. If the reconstruction falls within Vinci’s contractual investment obligations, the concessionaire would bear the capital expenditure and recover it through future airport revenues. If changes to the concession or public co-financing are required, the distribution of costs and risks would need to be established.

Airport investment can be recovered through passenger charges, airline fees, retail rents and other commercial revenues. Higher infrastructure expenditure could put pressure on charges if passenger growth slows before new capacity is fully utilised. Conversely, postponing the electricity upgrade could constrain airline schedules and commercial development, potentially affecting concession revenues and payments to the state.

€32mn share issue targeted at separate airport project

Aerodrom Nikola Tesla raised €32 million through a new share issue earlier in 2026, with the Serbian state contributing approximately two-thirds of the capital. The proceeds were associated with plans to reconstruct and expand the Museum of Aviation and were not explicitly allocated to the transformer reconstruction.

Electrification could increase future demand

Vinci has set targets to halve the airport’s carbon footprint by 2030 and reach net-zero emissions from its own operations by 2050. Nikola Tesla has achieved Level 3 Optimisation under the Airport Carbon Accreditation programme, extending carbon-management efforts to airlines, ground handlers and concessionaires.

Further decarbonisation measures could increase electricity consumption before reducing overall energy use. Replacing diesel-powered ground vehicles with electric equipment will require charging infrastructure, while supplying aircraft with electricity and conditioned air at gates transfers part of their energy consumption from jet fuel to the airport’s electrical system.

Electrification of heating could eventually reduce reliance on the gas-fired trigeneration plant but would also increase winter electricity demand. The transformer project therefore needs to accommodate potential future electrification as well as the facilities currently being built.

Renewable integration remains a separate infrastructure question

The existing 1 MW solar installation occupies 15,900 square metres, meaning substantially higher on-site solar generation would require additional space such as terminal roofs, parking canopies or other land. A long-term power-purchase agreement could provide renewable electricity without requiring additional airport land, although such an arrangement would not address physical capacity constraints unless the internal distribution system and external grid connection could accommodate the additional load. The C apron remains scheduled to enter service in March 2027, while the transformer reconstruction has yet to receive a publicly disclosed budget or completion date.