Port Polska, the state company building Poland’s new national airport, confirmed on August 7, 2026 that it has already launched 29 procurement procedures worth more than PLN 14 billion this year. The company plans to release a further 58 tenders worth over PLN 40 billion before the end of 2026. Combined, this year’s procurement plan totals more than PLN 54 billion, or roughly €12 billion, for a hub located near Baranów in Grodzisk Mazowiecki county, about 40 kilometers southwest of Warsaw.
The announcement covers work on both the aerodrome and the linked high-speed rail network. It comes as foundation piling for the passenger terminal is set to begin this autumn, marking the first physical construction on the site. Piotr Malepszak, the Government Plenipotentiary for Centralny Port Komunikacyjny, said the goal is to keep as much of the funding as possible inside the Polish economy, according to a statement by Port Polska.
Investment Plan Puts PLN 54 Billion in Play for 2026
Port Polska’s 2026 procurement plan spans airport buildings, road access, energy supply and railway works. Recent tenders cover the airport’s security screening system, access roads and the permanent power connection for the new site. The company has already signed contracts for the baggage handling system and for foundation works on the terminal.
Competitive dialogue procedures are also underway for the tunnel and railway station beneath the airport, and for the supplier of passenger boarding bridges. Marcin Michalski, acting president of the Centralny Port Komunikacyjny management board, said publishing the procurement schedule helps businesses prepare and shows the project is on timetable.
The wider pipeline runs through 2028. Next year’s tenders are expected to exceed PLN 24 billion, followed by a further PLN 17 billion in 2028, covering additional rail sections, cargo infrastructure and an area the company calls Airport City.
Budimex Wins the First Foundation Contract
Budimex, the Polish subsidiary of Spanish contractor Ferrovial, signed a contract worth nearly PLN 146 million (about €34 million) to build the terminal’s deep foundations. Six firms submitted bids after CPK invited nine pre-qualified contractors to tender in December 2025. Budimex’s offer was both the lowest and the most competitive of the six received.
The scope includes installing more than 8,000 piles and columns, ranging from 9 to 30 meters in length, across more than 140 kilometers of ground reinforcement, and would be characterized by:
- Two independent runways
- Capacity for more than 300,000 annual flight operations
- Expected to generate more than 35,000 direct jobs in the airport area
- Estimated investment of approximately PLN 131.7 billion by 2032
- Designed to become one of the most modern airports in Central Europe
Work starts in September 2026. Artur Popko, president and CEO of Budimex, called it a project of strategic importance for Poland and Central Europe, in remarks cited by WebWire.
Infrastructure Minister Dariusz Klimczak framed the milestone in similar terms. “Foundation works for the terminal, including deep piling, will begin this autumn. This will mark the symbolic start of the construction of a new state-of-the-art airport,” he said.
Hill International to Steer the Wider Construction Programme
A consortium led by US firm Hill International won a 1.6 billion zloty (€373 million) contract in April 2026 to act as general contract engineer, overseeing the construction timetable, quality control and budget across the whole programme. It beat four rival bids with the lowest offer, though CPK said contractor experience also weighed in the decision.
Bidders needed to show at least 15 years of experience managing an airport project with 20 million annual passengers and a contract value above €2 billion. Maciej Lasek, the government’s plenipotentiary for CPK at the time, called the award “another milestone” in building the airport. Filip Czernicki, CPK’s CEO, said Hill International will also help assess the project’s environmental and community impact.
Terminal Design and Passenger Capacity
Designed by Foster + Partners with Buro Happold, the passenger terminal will cover about 450,000 square meters. Five consortia of 16 construction firms, including 14 of Poland’s largest builders, bid for the terminal contract in July 2026, with an award expected around the turn of 2026 into 2027, according to a Port Polska announcement.
On opening day, the terminal is set to offer:
- Up to 170 check-in desks
- 26 contact stands for narrow-body aircraft
- 23 contact stands for wide-body aircraft, including 18 flexible MARS stands
- About 11 kilometers of baggage conveyor belts
Initial capacity is projected at between 34 and 44 million passengers a year, with room to expand toward 60 million as later phases open. The airport does not yet carry an IATA or ICAO code, since it remains under construction and is not expected to open before 2032.
Rail and Road Links Tie the Hub to Warsaw and Łódź
Port Polska is building the hub alongside a new high-speed rail line linking Warsaw, Łódź and other Polish cities, with a station and tunnel planned directly beneath the terminal. Competitive dialogue is underway for two sections of that line, and CPK is separately in talks with six consortia to build the first 13-kilometer rail stretch to the airport, with a contract expected in 2027.
Once complete, the rail network is meant to cut travel time between Warsaw and the airport to a matter of minutes and connect onward to Poznań, Wrocław, Kraków and Gdańsk. A high-speed link to Frankfurt (Oder) is also planned, which would shorten the Berlin route to under three and a half hours. The project could eventually lead to the closure of Warsaw Chopin Airport (WAW), Poland’s current main hub for LOT Polish Airlines (LO), though no official decision has been made.
A Project That Has Grown, been Renamed and Survived Political Rows
The current burst of tenders follows years of turbulence for the project, first proposed in the early 2000s and formally approved in 2017. Estimated costs have climbed steadily, from around $10 billion when construction was still targeted for 2028 to roughly €30 to €31 billion today, as the scope expanded and the opening date slipped to 2032.
Prime Minister Donald Tusk’s government renamed the project from Centralny Port Komunikacyjny to Port Polska in December 2025. Tusk said the change was needed to clear away what he called “abuses, empty, pompous propaganda, and sometimes the plain theft” tied to the previous administration’s handling of the scheme. A state auditor’s report released in September 2025 had already found that costly mistakes under the prior government caused delays and hundreds of millions of zloty in lost revenue.
Despite that history, the current government confirmed in 2024 that construction would proceed, and this year’s tender volumes suggest the project has moved decisively from planning into delivery. With foundation piling starting in September and terminal and rail contracts due within the next year, Port Polska’s own timetable still points to an operational airport in 2032.
