Adani Airports Eyes 20 Per Cent Growth Surge With Navi Mumbai Airport Project Nearing Completion

Adani Airports, the aviation arm of Adani Enterprises, is preparing for significant growth as it looks forward to the launch of the Navi Mumbai airport project by the end of the fiscal year 2024-25 (FY25).

The project, spearheaded by Navi Mumbai International Airport Limited (NMIAL), operates as a special purpose vehicle (SPV) with equity participation from Adani Airport Holdings Limited (AAHL) and CIDCO (City and Industrial Development Corporation) in a 74:26 ratio.

Adani Airports's Deputy Chief Financial Officer Saurabh Shah has expressed optimism about the company's prospects, expecting a substantial surge in operations following the completion of this greenfield project.

“This year we grew by about 20 per cent in terms of the passenger movement that we had. And that similar trend should continue with additions coming from Navi Mumbai once we start that, which will be by the end of the coming year — in the end of FY25. So then, there will be an exponential jump in FY26 because of the new greenfield project that will be completed,” reports bussinessline.

The Navi Mumbai International Airport, spanning an area of 1,160 acres, the airport project comes with a total estimated cost of Rs 16,700 crore. It will be equipped with two runways positioned 1.55 kilometres apart from each other.

Financial performance

In the fourth quarter of FY24, Adani Airports witnessed a remarkable turnaround, experiencing a 111 per cent increase in profit before tax (PBT), amounting to Rs 29 crore, compared to a loss of Rs 275 crore in the same quarter of the previous fiscal year. Revenues for the segment saw year-on-year growth of 33 per cent, totalling Rs 2,156.39 crore for Q4 FY24 and Rs 7,905.11 crore for the entire fiscal year.

The company managed to reduce its annual losses to Rs 64 crore in FY24 from Rs 538 crore in the preceding fiscal year, showcasing a positive trajectory in its financial performance. The Airports segment's contribution to the overall earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) surged to 45 per cent in FY24, amounting to Rs 2,437 crore.

Operational footprint

Adani Airports currently operates seven airports, including Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Thiruvananthapuram, Jaipur, Lucknow, Guwahati, and Mangaluru, collectively serving 23 per cent of India’s total air passenger traffic.

Mumbai Airport leads in passenger traffic, handling 13.9 million passengers in Q4 FY24, followed by Ahmedabad Airport with 3.1 million passengers.

Expansion initiatives

In line with its expansion strategy, Adani Airports recently inaugurated Phase I of the integrated terminal 3 at Lucknow Airport, capable of serving eight million passengers annually. Additionally, the company added 10 new routes, seven new airlines, and 18 new flights, demonstrating its commitment to enhancing connectivity and passenger experience across its airport network.

Industry reports, such as those by CAPA India, indicate a promising outlook for Indian air travel, with forecasts suggesting that Indian carriers could have orders for up to 2,000 aircraft by March of the following year. These projections reflect long-term growth trends in both domestic and international travel.