FRANKFURT (dpa-AFX) - The operator Fraport is expanding the cargo handling areas at Frankfurt Airport. The company announced on Thursday that the new "Logistics Hub West" is to be built inside the fence in the far west of the airport site. The first freight halls on the former site of the decommissioned Ticona chemical plant could therefore open in 2028. An area of 250,000 square meters is initially available for this with a development plan already in place. The site could be connected to the airport's security area via direct access to the northwest runway and could also be provided with a rail connection.

The plans are based on the assumption that cargo handling at Europe's largest cargo hub will grow by a further 50 percent to more than three million tons per year by 2040. For this reason, Fraport wants to work with customers to further digitalize processes and also redesign the cargo areas in the south of the airport. The "Cargo City South" there could be optimized to create an additional 43,000 square meters of cargo space. The third passenger terminal of Germany's largest airport is also being built in the south at a cost of around four billion euros and is scheduled to go online in 2026./ceb/DP/jha