South Africa’s airports company has turned in fairly good numbers for a year which saw the rand shaking, the local economy rickety, and their South African Airways main partner rather dilapidated.
Airports Company South Africa (ACSA) reported revenue growth of 3.4% to R8.6 billion in the year ended 31 March 2017, with profit up 10.8% to R2 billion.
So what I hear you say, revenue growth is below inflation which is over 6.5%?
Yes, but it’s profits rose 10.8% while expenditure dropped 31.3%. So if you invested, your return on equity was 11.3% which is slightly lower than the previous period but not too shabby in the period dominated by a limping economy and by SAA’s ramshackle moment in time.
The total number of departing passengers from nine ACSA airports topped 20 million, with the darling being international passengers which grew at 6.1%. Domestic growth was tardy at 2.2% but blame that on our economic position presently.
Another gold star went to Cape Town International Airport which saw more than 10 million arriving and departing passengers for the first time, and King Shaka totting up more than 5 million also for the first time.
Domestic landing volumes were flag registering no growth, while international flight volumes grew at 2.5% which ACSA says indicates a higher number of passengers on scheduled flights.
While money is gets from aviation contributed 63% of the bottom line, non-aviation such as retail, advertising, rentals, parking and car hire made up the difference.
Bongani Maseko, ACSA COO, sounded cautious when he released the information today.
“The overall financial position of the Company therefore remains healthy despite
regulatory uncertainty and difficult economic conditions.”
Maseko didn’t wax too lyrical about ACSA’s attempts at forcing through a radical hike in tariffs, which is tried to introduce two years ago as a sort of magical slight of hand.
“Operationally, we are adapting well to a new tariff regime from the regulator which
required a 35.5% reduction for the 2018 financial year with increases in the following
two years of 5.8% and 7.4%,” he said.
So aviation is still alive and well, and lets hope ACSA refrains from their previous attempts at killing the goose that’s laying their golden eggs.
Desmond Latham 