AENA sees surge in first half F&B revenue but duty free drags its heels

SPAIN. Spanish airport operator AENA has reported solid first half growth in its food & beverage and speciality shops business lines of +14.9% and +14.6% respectively.

But its duty free shops – run by Dufry – only managed a rise of +3.4% year-on-year. This was against traffic growth in AENA’s Spanish network of +6.8%, to 121.1 million passengers.

Source (all charts): AENA
Click on image to enlarge.

The bulk of AENA’s operations are in Spain (94% by revenue in H1 2018) but it also has an international segment, whose main investments are in the UK (at London Luton Airport), Mexico and Colombia.

Across the entire commercial division, revenue increased +8.8% to reach €519.1 million (US$693.2 million). Average commercial revenue per passenger rose +1.9%, from €4.20 to €4.30.

Total ordinary commercial revenue includes minimum annual guaranteed (MAG) rents recognised under contracts for duty free shops, F&B, speciality stores, advertising and other commercial activities.

In the first half of 2018, these MAGs rose substantially to €55.8 million from €35.3 million in H1 2017. They have grown to account for 16.6% of revenue from business lines with contracts that include MAG clauses, up from 11.3% in H1 2017.

Duty free remains, by far, the biggest business line with revenue of €142.6 million (US$190.4 million) in the first half. In the same period F&B reached €87.9 million (US$117.4 million) and is closing the gap. Other prominent commercial business lines are car rental, car parking and VIP services (such as use of lounges, free access zones and fast track).

Click on image to enlarge.

Across the Spanish network, domestic traffic outshone international traffic with growth of +11.8% versus +4.7% in the first half.

Among the key airports in its Spanish portfolio, flagship locations Madrid-Barajas and Barcelona-El Prat showed the biggest international traffic increases at +7.9% and 6.3% respectively in the period. Together they handle 42.1% of AENA passengers in Spain.

Palma de Mallorca rose +2.2% while the Canary Islands Group contracted -2.1%. Group I airports (Alicante-Elche, Bilbao, Girona, Ibiza, Málaga-Costa del Sol, Menorca, Seville and Valencia) increased +5.9%. In total, all the above-mentioned locations accounted for 94.3% of AENA traffic in H1, with Group II and Group III airports making up the rest.

AENA’s full financials, including EBITDA and consolidated profit, can be seen in the table below.

Click on image to enlarge.
Click on image to enlarge.
Food & Beverage The Magazine eZine