Zurich Airport Ltd. in the first half of 2024: higher demand across all business segments Dienstag, 27. August 2024 - 07:01
Demand for air travel is strong, passenger numbers are continuing to recover. Real estate and commercial business at Zurich Airport also continued to grow. Against this backdrop, Zurich Airport Ltd. achieved a consolidated result of CHF 151.8 million in the first half of 2024, posting the best half-year result to date in its history.
Total revenue amounted to CHF 631.1 million in the first half of 2024 (+9% compared with 2023). This corresponds to 107% of the 2019 figure. Aviation revenue rose by 13% over the prior-year period to CHF 313.5 million. Non-aviation revenue increased by 7% to CHF 317.6 million. Operating expenses climbed by 12% over the prior-year period to CHF 284.4 million.
Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) rose by 7% over the prior-year period to CHF 346.8 million. Compared with the first half of 2019, EBITDA was up by 14%. This led to a positive consolidated result of CHF 151.8 million (H1 2023: CHF 138.1 million), equivalent to 106% of the best half-year result to date achieved in 2019 (H1 2019: CHF 143.4 million).
In the first half of 2024, a total of 14,516,638 passengers used Zurich Airport as a departure, transfer or destination airport, 11% more than in the prior-year period and translating into 97% of the figure recorded in the first half of 2019. On peak days, passenger numbers exceeded 100,000. The volume of freight handled climbed by 15% to 215,299 tons (corresponds to 95% of the 2019 figure). In the summer 2024 timetable, 62 airlines are flying to a total of 200 destinations from Zurich Airport, marking a slight increase over the prior year’s summer timetable.
Positive trend in commercial and real estate revenueThe higher passenger numbers in the first half of the year left positive traces on commercial revenue on both the airside and the publicly accessible landside. Total commercial and parking revenue increased by 5% over the first half of 2023 to CHF 133.8 million. Compared to the prior-year period, real estate revenue was up 1%, climbing to a new all-time high of CHF 98.2 million. In the first six months of the year, the Circle continued to establish itself as a popular business and service centre for nationally and internationally successful companies and service providers. The occupancy rate stands at more than 90%.
Investments and major projectsIn the reporting period, Zurich Airport Ltd. invested a total of CHF 275.4 million (prior-year period: CHF 162.9 million) in property, plant, equipment and projects, including CHF 117.0 million at the Zurich site (prior-year period: CHF 84.2 million). Work on developing the landside passenger zones is well underway. This will result in a wider range of retail outlets and dining facilities, improve integration of the Circle and provide more space for passenger routes from autumn 2027. In addition, the main work on the new baggage sorting system at Zurich Airport was completed in June, seven years after the project began. The old system will be phased out in full by 2027. Major progress was made on the preliminary project for the new Dock A in the first half of 2024, with completion expected by the end of the year. Various interim solutions that are needed to maintain operations during the construction phase will be implemented in the near future. A further important milestone in the first half of the year was the receipt of the planning permission applied for at the end of 2019 for the taxiway around runway 28. This important infrastructure project will make it possible to avoid more than 100,000 runway crossings compared with 2019, thus additionally enhancing safety at Zurich Airport. Moreover, in March almost 62 percent of the participating Zurich electorate voted in favour of a further safety project, namely the runway extension 28 and 32.
International airport businessRevenue from foreign business rose by 20% to CHF 49 million in the first half of the year. The largest foreign project entails the construction of the new airport in Noida near Delhi, India. Construction work on the runway, the passenger terminal and the control tower have reached an advanced stage of completion. In the first half of 2024, further licences were granted for ground handling, the operation of the commercial zones and important maintenance contracts. The airport is scheduled to go into operation at the end of April 2025. Operation of the international airport in Natal, Brazil, was officially taken over on 19 February 2024. It currently has a capacity of 6.5 million passengers per year and a 30-year concession. At the airport in Iquique, Chile, construction of the terminal was completed in the first half of 2024, with acceptance by the government planned for late summer 2024.
OutlookDriven by a continuing rise in demand, Zurich Airport Ltd. performed favourably in the first half of 2024. Roughly 31 million passengers are expected to pass through the Zurich site over 2024 as a whole. Punctuality improved until the summer months but remains the focus of numerous measures implemented with all relevant partners. Zurich Airport Ltd. is making an important contribution to more sustainable, needs-oriented and high-quality mobility for the Swiss economy through continuous investment and innovation.