Athens International Airport on the rebound

Athens International Airport (AIA) has returned to profitability as shown by 2021 figures, setting the course for the restart of infrastructure projects that were on hold for two years due to the pandemic. Limiting operating costs, but mainly the state aid of 110.02 million euros for pandemic losses, led to pre-tax profits of 166.3 million euros.

For yet another year, cargo made the difference, which showed resilience even in the midst of the pandemic, with cargo transportation increasing by 31% compared to 2020, but also 9% compared to 2019. A total of 98,286 tons of goods were handled.

The contribution of state aid

In particular, the operating income of Athens airport amounted in 2021 to 272.2 million euros, reduced by 46% compared to 2019, but improved compared to 2020 by 86 million euros. Thanks to the measures taken by the company to contain costs, profit before ordinary business activities amounted to 56.3 million euros, which increased to 166.3 million euros thanks to state compensation.

This was obtained through a direct grant of €31.6 million in cash, as well as offsetting worth €78.42 million, corresponding to the Rights Grant Fee arrears for the years 2020, 2021, and 2022. Thus secured, according to the financial statements , a healthy cash position amounting to 381.6 million euros was therefore secured at the end of the FY 2021.

Expansions rev up

The expansion of building facilities of the Athens International Airport is provided for in the concession contract, based on passenger traffic, i.e. when demand exceeds certain capacity limits. The existing threshold of 95% was exceeded with the completion of the twelve-month period ending May 2019, when “Eleftherios Venizelos” recorded 24.76 million passengers.

The company therefore drew up a plan to increase capacity by at least 20%, which it submitted to the CAA together with the masterplan update. On December 27, the new masterplan was approved, but a few months later the pandemic stopped all planning. Passenger traffic fell to unprecedented levels, well below the stipulated limits of the concession contract, resulting in the postponement of expansion projects.

However, as noted in the 2021 financial statements, always subject to how air traffic goes (which still lags behind that of 2019) “some of the terminal and runway capacity projects that we put on hold due to the pandemic both recent years” are planned to start .

In mid-July, moreover, the tender for the second “small” extension of the airport terminal, the so-called eastern terminal, worth 6.1 million euros (without VAT) was launched. The new building will have 1,400 sq.m. covered spaces on two levels, arrivals and departures. It is recalled that the southwest extension, amounting to 31 million euros, which added new building facilities of 14,950 sq.m., was completed in 2020. At the same time, a tender was launched for the new taxi waiting area.

As for the much-discussed major expansion, the report notes that major projects related to the mandatory expansion of the Airport’s building facilities will become relevant again when passenger traffic approaches 2019 levels.

In addition, the completion of the new 16 MWp photovoltaic park is expected. This is the first important step towards the implementation of AIA’s commitment to zero carbon emissions (Net Zero Carbon), also known as ROUTE 2025. The operation of the facility is expected in 2023. Athens Airport from 2005 to 2021 has reduced its footprint by over 40%.

Passenger traffic exceeded 2021 figures

Passenger traffic at Athens International Airport in 2021 amounted to 12.35 million passengers, improved by 52.8% compared to 2020, but decreased by 51.7% compared to 2019, due to the consequences of the pandemic. Last year, Athens was directly connected by regular routes to 132 destinations – cities, compared to 126 in 2020 and 157 in 2019, to 48 countries from 51 in 2020 and 55 in 2019. In total, 62 airlines flew from AIA from 59 in 2019 2020 and 66 in 2019.

It is noted that, according to the latest traffic data, completing the first eight months of 2022, Athens Airport has already surpassed the performance of 2021. This year, over 14.66 million passengers have already been handled, with international traffic in the eight months to be more than double that of 2021. Compared to 2019, a record year for “Eleftherios Venizelos”, for the period January – August, traffic falls short by 15.1%. In particular, during the summer season, i.e. a from May to August, on a monthly basis, more than 2 million passengers were transported.

The estimate for the whole of 2022, according to the already published financial statements of 2021, is that it will close with an increase in passenger traffic of the order of 35-40% compared to last year.

New landscape for financing needs

The disbursement of the last installment of the loan from the European Investment Bank, which was the main source of financing for the construction of the Athens airport, in June 2022, will improve the flexibility of the company. This is because the terms of the loan significantly affected the financing options available. This milestone is therefore seen as an opportunity to review existing financing options and potentially for the company to move forward with solutions that will allow it to improve its current and future financing needs, as well as shareholder value.