Summarize this content in well-structured paragraphs in German language and keep HTML tags
Airport operator, Fraport, enjoyed an impressive first six months of the year, enjoying a 13% rise in revenues and a 7.2% upturn in passenger numbers across it global network.
Its half-year figures, released today, show that it handled 74.1 million travellers across its actively-managed aviation gateways during the first half of 2024 (ending June 30).
The growing demand for air travel led to its Group revenue rising to €2,038.8 million and EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization) to €567.1 million – up 17.8% year-on-year.
And Fraport’s Group result, or net profit, registered an even higher growth rate, surging by nearly 90% to €160.8 million (from €85.0 million in the first half of 2023).
Commenting on its half-year performance, Fraport CEO, Dr Stefan Schulte, said: “In the second quarter of 2024, we successfully continued our positive financial performance from the beginning of the year.
“Passenger numbers in Frankfurt grew by about 4.5% in the April-to-June period. However, compared with the 10.4% increase seen in the first quarter, the positive trend in Frankfurt has slowed down during the second quarter.
“Growth in Frankfurt is particularly constrained by high location-specific costs imposed by German regulators. Moreover, delivery delays for new Boeing aircraft affecting our main customer Lufthansa and additional maintenance intervals for the Airbus A320 aircraft family also cause growth rates to gradually level off in the low single-digits.
“Our international business continues to be the main growth driver for our company. Fraport’s 14 Greek airports achieved new passenger records in the first half – as did our Group airports in Antalya and Lima.”
Key performance indicators reach double-digit growth
In the first half of 2024, Fraport’s Group revenue increased by 14.1% year-on-year to €1,766.6 million (after adjusting for revenues resulting from construction and expansion measures at Fraport’s international subsidiaries in line with IFRIC 12).
In Frankfurt, this positive revenue performance was driven by passenger growth and price effects leading to higher proceeds from airport charges (up €60.9 million year-on-year), infrastructure charges (up €21.6 million), ground services (up €17.8 million) and aviation security charges (up €14.0 million).
The Group’s adjusted revenue was also boosted by Fraport’s international business. Major contributions came from Fraport USA (up €33.0 million), after this subsidiary took over centre management operations at Washington DC’s Dulles and Ronald Reagan airports at the start of the year.
Lima (up €25.5 million) and Fraport Greece (up €22.2 million) also contributed to revenue growth, with both subsidiaries showing positive traffic performance.
Rising passenger numbersMost of Fraport’s airports worldwide recorded ongoing passenger growth during the first half of 2024. Passenger numbers at Frankfurt Airport rebounded to about 86% of pre-pandemic levels, with some 28.8 million passengers traveling via FRA in 6M/2024 (up 7% year-on-year).
Meanwhile, some of the Group’s airports outside Germany even achieved new passenger records in 6M/2024, driven by growing demand. These included the 14 Greek airports overall (up 7.8% year-on-year), and the gateways in Antalya (up 12.8%) and Lima (up 20%).
FY 2024 outlook with more precise projectionsFraport’s executive board takes a positive view of the Group’s performance during the first half, while providing more precise projections for the full 2024 fiscal year.
Due to the above-mentioned aircraft supply delays, Fraport now expects passenger numbers in Frankfurt to reach the lower half of the previously projected range of between about 61 million and 65 million passengers.
Group EBITDA is forecast to reach a range of between approximately €1,260 million and €1,360 million. The Group result (net profit) is still expected to lie between around €435 million and €530 million.
Both performance indicators (EBITDA and Group result) are thus expected to reach about the middle of the previously forecast range.
