Russia's Airports of Regions buys Uralsk airport operator

ASTANA. Feb 13 (Interfax) - Russia's Airports of Regions Management Company has acquired Oral International Airport LLP in Uralsk, Kazakhstan.

Airports of Regions said that the deal was made "together with Kazakh partners," but did not give any more details.

"The new owner is expected to improve the quality of service, modernize the airport, and streamline business processes to boost international passenger and cargo air transportation," Airports of Regions said.

The current air passenger traffic at the Uralsk airport exceeds 300,000 people a year. The location in the northwest of Kazakhstan benefits the development of transit air traffic and hosting a regional hub.

Uralsk airport currently handles flights by Kazakh airlines Air Astana, Qazaq air, Fly Arystan, and SCAT to domestic destinations Almaty, Astana, Atyrau, Aktau and Turkestan, and on the international routes to Phuket and Frankfurt.

Airports of Regions, part of Retrans, which is owned by the former top manager of Renova Vladimir Rezer with 90% and the management of Airports of Regions Management Company with 10%.

Airports of Regions, a leading airport holding in Russia, runs airports in Yekaterinburg, Samara, Nizhny Novgorod, Rostov-on-Don, Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, Blagoveshchensk, Novy Urengoy, Saratov, Tobolsk, and Orenburg.