OREANDA-NEWS. On October 3, a press conference by Dmitry Kamenshchik, Chairman of the Board of EAST LINE Group, was held in the Atrium Meeting Room of Hotel Baltschug Kempinski Moscow, in the very center of Russia's capital. During the press conference, Dmitry Kamenshchik made a presentation for journalists themed "Intellectual Capital as a Basis for Competitiveness", Domodedovo press office reported. 

Today, Domodedovo Airport is the largest air hub in Eastern Europe and the leader among the airports of the Russian Federation and CIS countries. The pace of its dynamic development has been invariably high for many years. According to the top manager of EAST LINE Group, it is the Group's intellectual capital that provides for Domodedovo Airport's high competitiveness and the systematic building up of this capital is a priority task for the company's management:

"We wanted to show today the things that will shape our future, rather than speak about the factors that determine where we stand today. It is the intellectual capital that determines our future position. When a company grows, some things are hidden from the view of professional experts and are not seen from the company's books. I refer to intellectual capital and it is this capital that determines the position the company will have in the future. These are certain hidden circumstances you will not find in a financial statement; however, they can have an influence on whether or not the company beats competition," Dmitry Kamenshchik said.

EAST LINE Group's intellectual capital consists of four main elements: customer capital, technology capital, human capital, and reputation capital. Customers, technology, the company's staff and its reputation, rather than financial capital, are essential to ensure that the company offers competitive products.

During the press conference, when answering questions from reporters, Dmitry Kamenshchik also presented the plans of EAST LINE Group for 2008. According to him, approximately $250 million will be invested into Domodedovo Airport's development during the next year.

By the start of the 2008 summer season, works are expected to be completed for refurbishment and expansion of the airport terminal complex - its total floor area will increase to 250,000 square meters. Virtually immediately after that, the first stage will be started of the project of the second terminal, a new passenger tunnel more than 60,000 square meters large and featuring eight gates.

The Group's plans for 2008 also include start of construction works for a multilevel parking lot in front of the airport terminal complex.

In addition to the development of passenger services, EAST LINE Group plans to consolidate Domodedovo Airport's position in the cargo services and business aviation market. A new business aviation center and a cargo village will appear in the Domodedovo Airport area in approximately two years. The world's leading operators will be engaged in implementation of these projects.

The annual passenger traffic of Domodedovo International Airport is expected to reach 18.5 million passengers in 2007, with Domodedovo Airport's share of the market of Moscow hub air services increasing to 48%. In 2008, Domodedovo Airport will handle over 20 million passengers.