Barcelona debates the expansion of El Prat airport

Aena plans to build a hotel at El Prat airport as part of a strategic plan to promote hotel establishments near airports in five Spanish cities, including Barcelona.

The consulting firm Catella, specialized in real estate investments, has been advising Aena since January and anticipates that real estate projects could begin within three years. Currently, Catella is focused on analyzing the tourism sector and business travel in Barcelona, as well as hotel trends and needs near the airport.

The award of the project, for which five large national real estate companies competed, was carried out for an amount of 1.52 million euros. This news comes amid debates about the expansion of Barcelona airport, with proposals to extend one of the runways.

Catalan employers and businessmen agree on the need to expand El Prat, arguing that its capacity was at its limit before the pandemic, and that the lack of expansion could affect the competitiveness of the city in terms of attracting foreign investment compared to other European capitals, like Madrid.