Cardiff Airport was bought by the Welsh government in 2013
By David Deans
BBC Wales political reporter
Cardiff Airport is continuing to make a loss as it struggles to attract passengers back to pre-pandemic levels.
It lost £4.5m in the year to March 2023 according to company accounts, after receiving a government grant of £5.3m.
The company, which is owned by the Welsh government, is hoping to make more use of its land to raise money.
The Welsh government said the airport is working to restore flights to the facility and diversify its business.
Cardiff Airport said it facilitates 4,000 jobs related to aviation in the Vale of Glamorgan, where it is located.
The accounts report the first full financial year after Covid travel restrictions were lifted, and the year that Wizz Air pulled out.
Welsh government ministers are currently supporting the airport through a grant worth £42.6m over four years.
Over the years it has received millions in government loans. In 2021 Labour ministers wrote off a £42.6m loan they had given the airport, leaving it to repay £26.3m by 2045.
Some 910,000 used the airport in the year to March 2023, which was 380% more than the previous 12 months.
However it was only 58% of the figures from the last reported pre-pandemic year.
The accounts record pre-tax losses for 2022-23 of £4.5m.
However Cardiff Airport also uses a different measure, EBITDA which records earnings before tax, interest and other items, to report on its financial performance.
Using EBITDA Cardiff Airport said it reported a profit of £863,000 in 2022-23. It says its underlying losses fell by £2.1m from the year before, when it received a £7.9m grant.
Rather than just relying on passengers, Cardiff Airport is hoping to increase its income by making more use of its runway and land.
The accounts say that the decision of Wizz Air to close its operations in early 2023 reinforces “the need to ensure that dependence on passenger activities for the majority of revenues is reduced”.
There were hopes Qatar Airways would recommence flying from Cardiff Airport by the end of last year, but it is yet to return to the airport.
In an interview with Walesonline, Cardiff Airport Chief Executive Spencer Birns said there was a “commercial negotiation taking place” and the airport was working on a resumption with Qatar “as soon as possible”.
‘Losses will only grow’
The Welsh Conservatives’ Natasha Asghar said: “We were told Qatar Airways were coming back in December, yet here we are in February and there is no sign of flights to Doha.
“Diversification of the airport has to be the utmost priority for Labour’s Transport Minister, if more operators do not come on board Cardiff Airport’s losses will only grow.”
A Welsh government spokesperson said: “We’re committed to maintaining an airport in Wales because of the benefits it brings to the Welsh economy and its local supply chain.
“The airport generates over £240m GVA to the Welsh economy, annually. The executive team continues to work hard to restore flights and diversify the business as part of its recovery from the pandemic.
“Commercial discussions remain ongoing between Cardiff Airport and the airline regarding the resumption of the Qatar Airways’ Doha service from Cardiff.”
‘4,000 jobs’
Mr Birns said Cardiff Airport drives “over £246m of direct economic benefit to Wales annually”.
“We facilitate just over 4,000 aviation-related jobs in the Vale of Glamorgan, by ensuring safe and secure airport operations across both the Cardiff and St Athan airfields,” he added.
“The largest employer, British Airways, has been operating from their maintenance centre in Wales for over 30 years.
“The airport typically drives over £246m of direct economic benefit to Wales annually. It’s a vital part of the nation’s economic infrastructure.”
Ryanair is due to add routes to five destinations in the summer of 2024, he added.
