Riga Airport in Latvia has reported €31.8m (US$35.4m) in turnover for last year, 12.5% more than had been planned in the year’s budget.
The airport’s unaudited condensed interim statement for 2021 shows that the company was able to reduce its budgeted losses by €10m (US$11.1m) and eventually closed the year with losses of €9.4m (US$10.5m).
In 2021, the number of passengers handled at Riga Airport reached 2.35 million, almost a fifth more than in 2020. However, this was still a decrease of 70% compared to 2019. During 2021, the number of serviced flights increased by 10%, reaching more than 39,000 flights. The cargo segment grew by 20% compared to 2020 (27,800 tons) but this was up only 2% compared to 2019. In 2021, Riga Airport handled 47.5% of the Baltic capital cities’ air cargo, 39% of flights and 38% of its passengers.
Laila Odiņa, chairperson of executive board at Riga International Airport, said, “The Covid-19 pandemic particularly affected the airport’s operations in the first half of 2021, when our revenue was lower than expected due to the severe travel restrictions. In the second half of the year, the airport’s revenue in all positions increased significantly, exceeding the budget forecasts.
“Thanks to the reduction of restrictions and the introduction of the EU digital travel certificate, which facilitated the growth of passenger traffic, as well as strict financial policies and cost control, we were able to return to profit and reduce budget losses in the second half of the year.”