Ersel Göral
Ersel Göral | |
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| Born | 12 April 1972 Istanbul |
| Nationality | Turkish |
| Citizenship | Turkey |
| Education | Business Administration |
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Ersel Göral (born Arpil 12, 1972) is a Turkish businessperson and professional executive. Vice President of King Salman International Airport (KSIA)
Early years[edit]
Ersel Göral was born in Istanbul on 12 April 1972. He graduated from Kadikoy Maarif College and had his Business Administration degree in 1998, from Istanbul University. He stepped into the Aviation Business in 1993 and held offices there both in Turkey and abroad since then.
Career[edit]
After taking charge as the Deputy General Manager-Operations at Istanbul Ataurk Airport, he worked as the General Manager at Tbilisi & Batumi International Airports in Georgia (2 years) and 4 years in Tunisia for Enfidha-Hammamet & Monastır Airports respectivley, during the construction and the operations period of all these airports managed by TAV. As Ersel Goral gets back to Turkey in 2011, he was in charge of Antalya Airport as the General Manager until 2015. In 2016, he was appointed as the CAIO (Chief Airportwise Integration Officer) at Istanbul New Airport project executed by IGA. Goral then took on the role of CEO of ISG & SGC Co’s, operator of Istanbul Sabiha Gokcen International Airport in September 2017.[1] As he ended up this role in April 2021, he was assigned as the CEO of MR, the management company of Meridiam-Renaissance joint venture established to construct and operate the five city hospitals (Bursa, Adana, Yozgat, Elazig, Gaziantep) for 25 years. Goral finally has been assigned by PIF in March 2024 (Public Investment Fund, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds in the world) as the Vice President of King Salman International Airport (KSIA) to be constructed and operated in Riyadh, the capital of Kingdom of Saudia Arabia. KSIA is one of the ambitious projects to support Saudi Arabia's Vision 2030 to take advantage of its strategic geographical location, as it is a link between Asia, Africa, and Europe, and makes Riyadh a global destination for transportation, trade, and tourism. The airport aims to accommodate up to 120 million travelers by 2030 and 185 million travelers, with the capacity to process 3.5 million tons of cargo, by 2050. Riyadh’s identity and the Saudi culture will be taken into consideration in the airport’s design to ensure a unique and a seamless travel experience for its visitors and travelers.
Goral, has been serving roles in all stages of privatization projects in addition to his expertise in management, is the only one in the aviation industry taking top-executive roles in four major airports in Turkey.
Awards and honors[edit]
Under Goral’s directorship, Sabiha Gokcen Airport was named as one of the 10 major airports in Europe and won more than 50 local and international awards by means of the projects led by Goral. Last but not the least; Sabiha Gokcen Airport was rewarded by CAPA as the Airport of the Year Worldwide in 2019. Ersel Goral has won a bronze prize at the Worldwide Transportation Executive of the Year category of 2019 Stevie Business Awards and in 2020, he has been selected as one of the 50 CEO steering Turkish business environments by Business Life magazine. [2] [3] [4] [5]