Groupe ADP member TAV Airports saw its 2023 revenues climb 25% to €1.3 billion as passenger numbers hit 96 million, a 22% increase year-on-year.

The airport operator manages 15 airports in eight countries, including Turkey, Croatia and Georgia. 

EBITDA grew 19% over the year to reach €385m. Net income stood at €249m, representing 104% growth on 2022. 

Across the group, duty free spend per passenger remained unchanged at €8.9 in 2023. However, revenues from duty free increased by 19% to reach €60.5 million for the year. 

Sustainability gains included applying to build solar power generation capacity at Ankara, Bodrum and Izmir, which would produce 18.4 MW.

The operator said it saw “strong recovery” in passenger traffic across its portfolio. 

When broken down by source market, Russian passenger numbers collapsed by 40% against 2019 levels. Ukraine traveller numbers were down 100%.

Markets showing significant growth included Poland (+78%), Turkey (+75%), the UAE (+65%), the UK (+58%) and Germany (+24%).

TAV’s passenger numbers are now 7% above 2019 levels. The business said it is forecasting the figure to reach between 100 and 110 million in 2024. 

“With the lift of the Russian travel ban in May 2023, we started to see a gradually increasing recovery in Georgia,” said TAV Airports CEO, Serkan Kaptan.

TAV Airports: €1.2bn in infrastructure investments.

Key 2023 activities include a significant investment at Almaty Airport. “With the opening of the new terminal expected in June 2024, travellers will be able to enjoy a world class assortment of services and facilities,” Kaptan continued. 

“Our investment in Almaty will bolster tourism, business and cargo traffic while supporting the overall development of the country.  

“Almaty is situated very strategically between Europe and China, making it an ideal hub for global cargo operations.”

He added that Kazakhstan is an “up-and-coming” outbound tourism market, with the country’s total aircraft fleet set to increase by 25% ahead of 2025. 

Other key developments include the ongoing investment programme at Antalya Airport, set to increase capacity from 35m to 70m on completion in 2025 Q1.

“With a wider and newer retail offering we will enhance passenger experience significantly and improve commercial performance,” Kaptan said. 

“Our airside investments in Ankara Esenboğa Airport are also 34% complete and we expect to finalise these investments by the end of 2025.”

In total, €1.2bn will be committed to infrastructure projects by the end of 2025. 

Looking ahead, “revenue growth is expected to be above passenger growth mostly due to significant growth in lounge and hospitality, IT and ground handling services,” Kaptan forecasted.

He added that compound growth revenue expectations had been upgraded for the 2022-2025 period. Revenues should now see 14-18% growth, with EBITDA increasing by 14-20%. 

Last year, ATU Duty Free, a joint venture between TAV Airports and Unifree Duty Free/Gebr. Heinemann, invested €1m in its Luxury Square concept at Istanbul Airport.