GMR Hyderabad Int'l Airport re-evaluates biz model

GMR Hyderabad International Airport (GHIAL) is on the brink of completing one year of commercial operations. In this short time, it has been rated the fifth most service-oriented airport in the world by Airports Council International. But, the airport is not jumping of joy. And, that's because, it is yet to stand on its own feet, financially speaking. With domestic passenger traffic at the airport dropping nearly 16%, it is now reviewing its business plan.
PS Nair, Chief Executive Officer of GHIAL said, "To address the unprecedented slowdown, we have our strategy in place, one of them being a review we did on de novo or annual operating plan. We recast all our figures and prepared an actionable plan for addressing the whole issue in a holistic manner."
The second phase of its expansion plan is also on hold.
"We have created extra capacity for 12 million passengers, whereas—this year we will be handling 6.3 million. What ever we created will meet future challenges for next four to five years," Nair said.
But there is a silver lining. International passenger traffic is up 9%, and freight traffic has grown 40%, this financial year. The airport also wants to increase non-aero revenues from its retail, advertising and maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) facility.
28/03/08 Vishwanath Pilla/CNBC-TV18/Moneycontrol.com

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Categories: Airports Mar 2009