This positive trend was mainly supported by the company's strict cost management and by the ongoing traffic recovery during the second half of 2021 – in Frankfurt, and particularly at the Group's airports worldwide.
The Group result (net profit) moved clearly back into positive territory, reaching €91.8 million at year-end 2021 (2019: minus €690.4 million).
Global travel restrictions still dampened passenger demand in the beginning months of 2021. Traffic first picked up again noticeably during the summer. A total of 24.8 million passengers traveled via Frankfurt Airport (FRA) in 2021, representing an increase of 32 percent year-on-year (2019: down 65 percent).
Most of the airports in Fraport's international portfolio also benefited from people's renewed desire to travel to warm-weather destinations – with some Group airports seeing significant passenger growth.
In October 2021, traffic nearly reached pre-crisis levels at the Greek airports and Antalya Airport on the Turkish Riviera. Across the Group, traffic growth rates ranged between 31 percent at Ljubljana Airport and 126 percent in Antalya, year-on-year. Cargo throughput at Frankfurt Airport (comprising airfreight and airmail) also continued to grow in 2021.
Despite the lack of belly capacity on passenger aircraft, FRA even hit a new record for cargo traffic in fiscal 2021. This underscores Frankfurt's vital role as one of the leading cargo hubs in Europe. Reflecting Fraport's overall positive traffic performance, Group revenue rose by 27.8 percent year-on-year to €2.14 billion. Adjusted for revenue from construction and expansion measures at Fraport's subsidiaries worldwide (in line with IFRIC 12), Group revenue grew by 30.9 percent to €1.90 billion.
Driven by revenue growth and a further significant reduction in operating expenses, Group EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization) clearly climbed back to positive territory in fiscal 2021, reaching €757.0 million (2019: minus €250.6 million).
This growth was also supported by crisis-related compensation payments and other pandemic compensation granted by governments – totaling around €320 million.
Group EBIT also increased markedly to €313.7 million (2019: minus €708.1 million). The Group result (net profit) recovered from a loss of €690 million recorded in 2020 (the first pandemic year) to a gain of €91.8 million in 2021.
For the current 2022 business year, Fraport's Executive Board expects traffic at Frankfurt Airport to range between approximately 39 million and 46 million travelers – equaling 55 to 65 percent of the pre-crisis 2019 passenger level. Group revenue is projected to reach about €3 billion.
Group EBITDA is expected to range between €760 million and €880 million, while Group EBIT is forecast to rise to between €320 million and €440 million.
The Group result (net profit) is expected to reach between €50 million and €150 million.
The current geopolitical situation has already been factored into this outlook to the extent now possible, given all the uncertainty.