Pre-COVID-19 traffic recovery sooner than expected
Aena expects to recover the pre-pandemic traffic levels in 2024 (about 275 million passengers), ahead of initial estimates; the number of travellers in its network in Spain is expected to be around 300 million by the end of the period covered by the Plan. This recovery is already underway and, as Mr. Lucena has highlighted, is taking place across the Aena network without the operational problems severely impacting other European airports where recovery figures are also lower. Aena CEO Maurici Lucena has stated that “this growing traffic will be managed at quality levels that have successfully been delivered through the challenging summer 2022”.He has also added that ”the recovery has been more robust than at our peers (…) Spain and its airports have performed well. The disruption has partially been driven by the operational problems suffered in the sector in Europe. Such performance is attributable not only to Aena’s work but also to the Spanish labour (…) and transport law and the role of Spain as a tourist engine that has managed to develop coordination tools that have been key to solving the problems that have arisen through the pandemic and its effects”.
A boost to the commercial business
Aena expects the commercial revenue per passenger to increase in 2026 by at least 12% compared to 2019, a figure estimated based on inflation forecasts peaking during 2022–2023 and then aligning with the central banks’ targets. The total revenue from this business would increase by more than 23%. The estimated growth figures will likely increase even further with the outcome of the very large tenders being launched during the Strategic Plan; such as the Duty-Free Shops tender, the largest in the world, with a very attractive procurement strategy with more commercial area, boosting competition and longer-term contracts.The above recovery of traffic and the commercial business performance are forecasted in a context of global and industry risks, among which the Chairman has highlighted the following: first, geopolitical risks, such as the invasion of Ukraine, which is impacting the economy; second, purely macroeconomic risks, such as rising interest rates, general inflation increases and energy prices; and third, industry-specific risks, such as structural changes in the cost base. Despite the above circumstances, “Aena will continue to be the undisputable leader in operational efficiency and safety in its industry”, Mr Lucena said. A significant factor will be the cost of energy, which will be mitigated in the medium term through Aena’s Photovoltaic Plan. This project, which requires an investment of €350 million for solar farms in the airport network, already has access and connection to the network for 52% of its needs.
The Photovoltaic Plan is an example that demonstrates that environmental sustainability is crucial to the future of the industry and that Aena has key projects in place in this regard. The CAP entails an investment of €550 million from 2021 to 2030 and its goals are ambitious: to achieve carbon neutrality by 2026 and net zero emissions at all airports in the network by 2040, which means achieving the global commitment of the industry 10 years earlier.
International activity: focused on Brazil and selective opportunities
Regarding Brazil, a strategic market where 20% of the country’s traffic will be managed by Aena from 2023, the airport manager will continue to materialise the investments across the northeast group of airports and will integrate and transition the 11 airports awarded in August 2022. Concerning the most significant one, Congonhas in São Paulo—the second airport with the highest passenger traffic in Brazil—Aena has designed a very sophisticated technical project that will meet the safety and quality requirements defined by the Brazilian government while transforming the commercial offer. “We consider that the recent operation in Brazil is magnificent”, Mr Lucena has explained.
Airport cities: more development in Madrid and activation at other airports
“Our expectations have been exceeded in terms of valuation and quality of the proposals received”, Mr Lucena summarised in relation to the project of the Adolfo Suárez Madrid-Barajas Airport City, in which the first 32 hectares have recently been awarded for logistics purposes, with a valuation of approximately €170 million. Additional 295 hectares are part of the Madrid development. This project is therefore already a reality and a precedent that is expected to be followed in other airports, such as Josep Tarradellas Barcelona-El Prat Airport, where the first tenders are planned between 2024 and 2025 and a total of 151 hectares is available; or the Málaga-Costa del Sol, Sevilla and Valencia Airports, where the first tenders are planned between 2023 and 2024.
