Tallinn Airport ends first half of year in profit
A total of 1,202,989 passengers passed through Tallinn Airport in the first six months of 2022, four times more than in the same period in 2021. In that time the group earned 5.4 million euros in profits.
The dropping of all restrictions, the addition of new destinations to the airport’s flight schedule and people’s renewed interest in travelling saw air travel recover more quickly than expected. Tallinn Airport’s income in the first half of the year totalled 30.9 million euros, of which 23.9 million comprised sales turnover directly linked to earnings from passengers and non-flight revenue. The group’s expenditure in the first six months of 2022 was 25.4 million euros, while its EBITDA was 9.4 million euros.
Passenger numbers remain 21% lower than in 2019, but due to growth in non-flight services, the group’s overall sales turnover has returned to the level it was at three years ago. As a result of the significant rise in the cost of utilities, expenditure has also returned to the pre-pandemic level despite the effective austerity measures implemented in previous years.
Its positive financial result notwithstanding, the group continues to focus on the efficient management of costs. “Regardless of the fact that our results for the first half of the year were good, we’re taking both inflation and coronavirus-related risks into account when looking ahead to autumn,” said Anneli Turkin, a member of the management board of Tallinn Airport. “Strong demand is likely to remain in Q3, but the understaffing that’s affecting European airports and the impact this is having on their ability to serve passengers will limit flight growth.”
The group invested a total of 6.1 million euros during the first half of the year. At Tallinn Airport, 1.8 million euros was invested on the sorting system for outbound luggage, 1.4 million on expanding the Schengen departure area, 0.5 million on extending the outbound luggage area and 0.5 million on the construction of solar parks. Funds were also allocated to the continuing work at Pärnu Airport.
Turkin says the group plans to invest a total of 23.6 million euros in 2022. “The projects we’ve undertaken and the time it’s taking to bring them to fruition have been affected by the increased cost and limited availability of building materials and the uncertainty arising from the war in Ukraine,” she explained. “But in spite of the challenges, we view the development and improvement of Tallinn Airport and the country’s regional airports as being as important as ever.”
More information about the financial results can be found here.
Tallinn Airport is Estonia’s largest state-owned airport. It is known as the cosiest airport in the world and has repeatedly been named one of the airports offering the best service in Europe. In addition to Tallinn Airport, the group operates six regional airports in Estonia.
