Hong Kong International Airport (HKIA) has made a six month profit of 3.8 billion Hong Kong dollars ($489.9 million) and it says the increasing traffic volumes justifies the need for a third runway.
The March to September profit is up 19.3 per cent on the same period of 2013, when it made a profit of 3.2 billion Hong Kong dollars. Cargo volumes have risen by 7.4 per cent from two million tonnes to 2.2 million tonnes in 2014. Revenue for the period was up by 9.3 per cent to eight billion Hong Kong dollars.
Airport Authority Hong Kong (AA) chief executive officer, Fred Lam Tin-fuk says: “We expect that the airport could reach saturation as early as 2016 or 2017. It is crucial that we expand the airport into a three-runway system in order to meet its increasing air traffic demand in the long term.”
Lam also says: “Because air traffic volumes at HKIA is growing at a faster-than-expected rate, we have been working on a number of projects, including the West Apron and the Midfield, to ensure that the airport is well equipped to meet its anticipated medium-term demand.”
AA executive director of finance, William Lo Chi-chung says he is pleased with the airport’s financial performance but is cautious about the future. “We are mindful of the slowing down of retail sales in Hong Kong and the potential increase in interest rates, which might bring adverse impact to the financial performance for the next six months and beyond.”
The West Apron development will offer 28 new parking stands when it is finished by the end of 2014, including four stands for aircraft with longer fuselages such as the Airbus A380 and the Boeing 747-8. The Midfield Concourse will have 20 new aircraft parking stands when the development is completed by the end of 2015.
The Midfield development undergone its topping-out ceremony and AA says it is on target to be completed on time and budget.
AA chairman, Vincent Lo, says: “The Midfield development shows that we are making immense efforts to cater to HKIA’s intermediate air traffic demand. But our two-runway system is close to reaching its maximum capacity, so the airport’s long term solution rests with expanding into a three runway system.”
