Airport concessions look to boost Brazil's passenger traffic

Recently awarded and upcoming airport concession processes in Brazil aim to revitalize passenger air traffic in a country that currently has relatively low per capita traffic.

The average Brazilian takes 0.3 flights each year. Chile, which has a much smaller population, averages 0.8 annual flights per capita, while in the US the figure is at 1.8, the executive secretary of Brazil's civil aviation department, Cleverson Aroeira, said at the recent Airport Infra Expo.

With Brazilian per capita air traffic at just 16.7% of that in the US and 42.9% of Chilean traffic, the government hopes upcoming airport improvements will encourage Brazilians to fly more.

In 2011, the São Gonçalo do Amarante international airport in Rio Grande do Norte state capital Natal was concessioned to consortium Inframérica. Earlier this year, Brasília airport and São Paulo state's Guarulhos and Viracopos airports were also privatized.

The industry outlook is positive following the concessions, as Viracopos, Brasília and Guaurulhos should see revenue growth of 600%, 300%, and 400% respectively within the next three decades, according to Aroeira.

Concessions are also planned for Cofins airport in southeastern state Minas Gerais and Galeão in Rio de Janeiro - however, launch dates have yet to be set.

In a report last month, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) called for Latin American governments to urgently improve infrastructure to make way for traffic growth, highlighting the recent privatizations in Brazil, for which the new operators bid some 24.5bn reais (US$14.3bn).

"The investment must be recouped through efficiency improvements that enable traffic growth," said IATA CEO Tony Tyler.

Brazil has 125 airports that operate regular flights, of which 59 are run by state or municipal governments, 54 by national airport authority Infraero, and 12 are privatized. At least 500 other airports operate without regular flights.

Of the privatized terminals, eight are run through state or municipal concessions, three via federal concessions and one via a concession through the national airport authorities commission, Conaero.

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