On Wednesday, London’s Heathrow airport announced plans to modernize Europe’s busiest airport with an investment of o2.3 billion ($2.9 billion) over the next two years.
According to the corporation, the investment will be used to enhance luggage delivery and initiatives that promote on-time departures and arrivals, given the airport’s increased passenger demand following the Covid epidemic.
Days after Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund PIF and French private equity firm Ardian completed their purchase of a nearly 38 percent stake in Heathrow from Spanish infrastructure behemoth Ferrovial and other shareholders, the announcement was made.
Heathrow, the UK and Europe’s busiest airport by passenger numbers, served a record 39.8 million passengers in the first half of 2024, with demand having more than doubled after the Covid pandemic.
It recently increased its full-year forecast to 83.8 million passengers.
Since the pandemic, Heathrow and European peers have suffered from flight cancellations, delays, long queues and baggage delivery problems.
The British Civil Aviation Authority’s decision earlier this year to request that Heathrow lower carrier prices for 2025 and 2026 was criticized by the airport.
Citing an existing decline in charges, the airport reported a 3.2 percent decline in revenue for the first nine months of this year in October.
Nonetheless, net profit after taxes increased to $496 million, or over 8%.
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