According to aviation experts, this decision allowed the organisation to survive the crisis that shook the aviation sector, to recover and to show growth trends, gradually becoming a regional leader, according to a press release from LTOU.
Since 1 July 2014, all three Lithuanian air gateways have recorded significant growth in many areas of activity. One of the key ones is the number of passengers, which has grown from 4.4 million in 2014 to more than 6 million in 2023, with a record 6.5 million passengers in 2019 (before the pandemic).
Simonas Bartkus, CEO of Lithuanian Airports, emphasised the positive impact of the merger.
“Over the past ten years Lithuanian Airports has become one of the most efficient airport operators in its region, with its experience that can, in principle, match even the largest European airport operators. Our vision is to contribute to Lithuania’s economic growth, and we have been successful in doing so and will do so even more actively in the coming period. It is also very important that we are constantly upgrading our infrastructure, expanding the geography of our flights, providing high quality services to our passengers, and developing our activities on the basis of sustainable principles. We have also learnt important lessons from the challenges of recent years and are now even better prepared to deal professionally with the unexpected,” commented Bartkus.
LTOU’s earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) margin for 2023 was 41.2%, compared to 32.6% in 2014. The network’s total financial income also increased significantly, from EUR 21.9 million in 2014 to EUR 59.8 million in 2023.
The return on equity (ROE) also showed a steady increase, from 0.7% in 2014 to 1.6% in 2023.
Dividends paid by LTOU to the State grew over the decade from EUR 1 million to more than EUR 5 million in 2023.