Berlin Airport Operator Would See Big Losses Even Without Pandemic
Berlin (dpa) - The state-owned operator of the German capital's two airports would have waded deep into the red this year even without the enormous challenge posed by the novel coronavirus pandemic, financial statements show.
Before the health crisis, the company Flughafen Berlin Brandenburg (FBB) had a planned loss of 157 million euros (176 million dollars) for 2020, around 61 million euros more than last year.
"Due to the effects of the coronavirus pandemic, a higher consolidated net loss is now to be expected," according to the financial documents released late Friday.
The company said it was unable to provide a new, reliable estimate of this year's losses. Instead of processing just under 36 million passengers as it did last year, the company now expects at best 10 million this year.
FBB forecasts that its liquidity will remain solid through the first quarter of 2021, but only if capital injections from its state owners take place as planned.
The airport operator is owned largely by the German states of Berlin and Brandenburg. They plan to provide FBB with an additional 300 million euros in support to compensate for the impact of the coronavirus.
FBB currently operates Tegel airport, in the city's north-west, and the smaller Schoenefeld airport, which lies to the south-east of the capital.
Air traffic is due to be consolidated to the long-delayed and problem-plagued Berlin Brandenburg Airport (BER) when it opens near Schoenefeld in October.
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