Fraport has reported that in the 2018 fiscal year ending 31 December it continued on its growth path – achieving new records in revenue and earnings.
The company said supported by strong passenger growth at its Frankfurt Airport home base and its group airports worldwide, revenue climbed by 18.5 per cent to nearly €3.5 billion. After adjusting for revenue related to capital expenditure for expansion measures at the international group companies (based on IFRIC 12), revenue rose 7.8 per cent to over €3.1 billion.
The operating result (group EBITDA) climbed markedly by 12.5 per cent to over €1.1 billion. The group result (net profit) rose even stronger, by 40 per cent to €505.7 million. This includes earnings gained from the sale of Fraport’s stake in Hanover Airport, which contributed €75.9 million.
About two-thirds of this increase can be attributed to Fraport’s international portfolio – with the airports in Brazil and Greece, in particular, making a significant contribution.
Revenue in the ground handling segment rose by five per cent year-on-year to €673.8 million. The strong growth in passenger traffic resulted, in particular, in stronger revenue from ground services and higher infrastructure charges.
On the other hand, passenger growth also led to higher personnel expenses at the FraGround and FraCareS subsidiaries. Accordingly, segment EBITDA declined by €7 million to €44.4 million. Segment EBIT dropped considerably by 94 per cent, but at €0.7 million still remained in positive territory.
Fraport executive board chairman, Stefan Schulte said: “We are pleased to look back on another very successful year, especially for our Group airports around the world. Here in Frankfurt, however, 2018 presented challenges due to the constraints in European airspace and the strong traffic demand.
“For the medium and long term, we are very well positioned both at Frankfurt Airport and in our international business. Moreover, we are laying the foundations for further long-term growth by implementing our expansion projects.”
Serving some 69.5 million passengers, Frankfurt Airport achieved a new passenger record in 2018 and growth of 7.8 per cent compared to 2017.
Schulte said: “Until the first pier of the new Terminal 3 opens in late 2021, we will focus on maintaining a high level of service quality at Frankfurt Airport – while dealing with the constraints affecting the entire aviation industry. In particular, enhancing the situation at the security checkpoints will be a top priority for us.”
Fraport’s international portfolio also posted a significant gain in passenger traffic during 2018. In Brazil, the two airports of Porto Alegre and Fortaleza reported a seven per cent increase to 14.9 million passengers in 2018 – Fraport Brasil’s first year of operating these airports.
At the 14 Greek airports, traffic rose by almost nine per cent to 29.9 million passengers. Antalya Airport in Turkey grew by a significant 22.5 per cent to 32.3 million travellers, a new record.
As for cargo, in 2018, based on its cargo throughput (air freight and airmail) of 2.2 million metric tons, Frankfurt Airport was Europe’s largest airport ahead of Paris Charles de Gaulle and Amsterdam Schiphol. Last year, cargo volume fell slightly below the previous year’s volume by 0.8 per cent which Fraport said was in line with economic development.
