Bengaluru’s Kempegowda International Airport has emerged as the most profitable airport in India for the fiscal year 2022-2023, raking in an impressive profit of Rs 528.3 crore. This financial success positions it ahead of other airports, marking a significant achievement in the aviation sector.

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Prem Watsa’s Fairfax India Holdings Corporation holds the majority stake, at 57 percent, in the Kempegowda International Airport, with Siemens owning 17 percent. The remaining 26 percent is divided equally between the Karnataka government via the Karnataka State Industrial and Infrastructure Development Corporation (KSIIDC) and the Union government through the Airport Authority of India.

Source: Money Control

Union Minister VK Singh, responding in writing in Rajya Sabha on December 4, disclosed that only three out of the 14 airports operating under the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) mode turned a profit during the same fiscal year. Cochin airport secured the second spot with a profit of Rs 267.1 crore, and Hyderabad claimed the third position with Rs 32.9 crore in profits.

Conversely, Ahmedabad airport faced the highest loss, totaling Rs 408.51 crore in 2022-2023, followed by Delhi (Rs 284.8 crore loss), Lucknow (Rs 160.6 crore loss), Mopa (Rs 148.3 crore loss), Kannur (Rs 131.9 crore loss), Jaipur (Rs 128.5 crore loss), Mangaluru (Rs 125.9 crore loss), Thiruvananthapuram (Rs 110.1 crore loss), Guwahati (Rs 60.9 crore loss), Durgapur (Rs 9.1 crore loss), and Mumbai (Rs 1.04 crore loss).

Source: MoneyControl

In line with the National Monetisation Pipeline (NMP), Union Minister VK Singh outlined plans to lease 25 Airports Authority of India (AAI) airports between 2022 and 2025. These airports, including Bhubaneswar, Varanasi, Amritsar, Trichy, Indore, and others, are earmarked for leasing. Singh stressed that this strategy aims at improved management, leveraging private sector efficiency and investment, ultimately benefiting states and passengers.

Highlighting the success of the leasing strategy, AAI has already leased out six airports, namely Mangaluru, Lucknow, Ahmedabad, Thiruvananthapuram, Jaipur, and Guwahati under the PPP mode. Singh revealed that the valuation of approximately Rs 2767 crore was spent on these six airports before handing them over to the PPP concessionaire. The concessionaire paid this amount as an upfront fee, subject to reconciliation and determination by the Airports Economic Regulatory Authority of India (AERA).

Source: Network Thoughts

“The airport-wise running costs saved by AAI per annum are: (i) Ahmedabad (Rs 137.41 crore), (ii) Jaipur (Rs 50.96 crore), (iii) Lucknow (Rs 62.96 crore), (iv) Mangaluru (Rs 53.29 crore), (v) Thiruvananthapuram (Rs 142.09 crore), (vi) Guwahati (Rs 67.88 crore),” said Singh. Since the takeover, each of the six concessionaires has earned revenue as follows: (i) Ahmedabad (Rs 506 crore), (ii) Jaipur (Rs 251 crore), (iii) Lucknow (Rs 365 crore), (iv) Mangaluru (Rs 118 crore), (v) Thiruvananthapuram (Rs 350 crore), (vi) Guwahati (Rs 248 crore),” he added.