The losses incurred by Antwerp Airport have grown to a total of €2.3 million, according to the annual accounts. The company is in a worrying financial situation, is structurally loss-making and increasingly dependent on the government and its shareholder, the French company Egis.
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‘The annual accounts are not good’: Antwerp Airport losses continue to grow
Belga
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Despite capitalising a number of costs and maintaining the same turnover, the airport in Deurne posted a net loss of €658,000 last year. In 2023, the loss was approximately €81,000. Its cumulative loss now totals €2.3 million.
“The annual accounts are not good,” said Professor Wouter Dewulf, aviation economist at the University of Antwerp.
“Deurne Airport has never really done well. Last year was another very bad year. I see several reasons for this. TUI Fly, which operates tourist flights, shut down operations for several months due to a problem with spare parts. There were also a lot of additional costs, including obtaining an environmental permit.”
Not much has happened in all these years, except for the arrival of TUI
Operating profit (EBIT) fell by almost €900,000 last year. In 2023, it fell by around €325,000.
The airport operates with subsidies from the Flemish government. “That’s not unusual, because it’s very difficult to make small regional airports profitable,” Dewulf said.
“But that doesn’t mean that an airport can’t look for additional sources of income. The Flemish government had expected Egis, the airport operator, to take a more proactive approach, but that didn’t happen. Not much has happened in all these years, except for the arrival of TUI.”
To aid its recovery, Dewulf suggests that the airport could invest in offices for companies that operate air taxis and increase landing fees for private jets.
This week, Belga reported that private jets make up 16% of traffic at Antwerp Airport.