Brussels, 13/05/2009 (Agence Europe) - on Wednesday 13 May, the European Commission approved the public financing of the construction of Berlin Brandenburg International (BBI) airport. The investment project aims to develop one single airport for the German capital. The authorised means (aid intensity amounts to a maximum of 27%) are capital increases of €654.5 million, a 100 % guarantee for up to €2.4 billion from the public shareholders of Flughafen Berlin Schönefeld GmbH and a €74 million infrastructure grant. The remainder of the €3.6 billion total cost will come from the airport's own resources. The project seeks to concentrate all aviation activity on the site of the current Berlin-Schönefeld Airport. Berlin has hitherto been served by three different airports: Tempelhof, which closed at the end of 2008, Tegal, which will operate until the opening of the new airport, and Schönefeld, which will be extended to accommodate the BBI. The investment project concerns the construction of a new airport with two parallel runways with an operating capacity of 45 million passengers per year and a new terminal with a starting capacity of 22-25 million passengers. (A.By./transl.rt)