Strategy

Long-Term Market Development Remains Positive Despite Short-Term Volatility

Despite geopolitical crises and regulatory challenges, the Executive Board expects to see stable growth in the global aviation market in the long term. Continued projected global economic growth and stable world trade will have a positive impact on the development. The world’s growing population, combined with the expanding middle class, which tends to consume more, are the main factors driving tourism demand. Disproportionate growth is still expected from and in the economic emerging markets. Fraport aligns its strategy to the forecasted development of the global aviation market and its trends.

Changes Compared with the Previous Year

In light of rapidly changing social, economic, technological, and political conditions, the Executive Board adapted and further developed the previous strategy in 2024. The main changes are reflected in the transformation of the five strategic dimensions of “Growth in Frankfurt and internationally,” “Service-oriented airport operator,” “Economically successful through optimal cooperation,” “Learning organization & digitalization,” and “Fairness and recognition for partners and neighbors” into three strategic “top priorities”. These top priorities are “growth and sustainability”, “efficiency and innovation”, and “top employer”. This demonstrates a stronger focus and is intended to support the achievement of the overarching goals of “fascinating customers” and enabling an “increasing EBITDA and free cash flow”.

The control parameters of the previous strategic dimensions were partially retained or developed further and integrated into the new strategy. In the area of sustainability, the previous greenhouse gas reduction targets (GHG) have been expanded to include further greenhouse gases and incorporated into the Net-Zero 2045 climate agenda. As the technological transformation continues at an accelerating pace, opportunities arise in relation to the use of artificial intelligence and thus the improvement of digital processes. These topics are bundled in the “efficiency and innovation” priority. A great deal of importance is already placed on employee development and participation, and this has been enhanced further by the creation of the new “top employer” priority.

Overall, Fraport.2030 aims to establish a more international focus for the Fraport Group. Compared to the previous strategic focus, the new strategy aims to link the top priorities even more closely with the objectives of Fraport.2030. This will be achieved through the central lever “working together,” which aims to strengthen cross-team collaboration in a transparent environment and promote knowledge sharing. The organization will also be designed to work efficiently in order to optimize cross-divisional and cross-border collaboration and increase customer satisfaction. Overall, Fraport.2030 is designed to enable both short-term efficiency gains and sustainable medium- to long-term Group growth and Group resilience.

Strategic Priorities

In the 2024 fiscal year, the Executive Board presented the new Group strategy Fraport.2030. The aim of this strategy is to secure the Group’s future in the long term and achieve profitable business growth. As well as being important for the long-term development of the company, the strategy also addresses customer expectations. Inspiring customers is seen as an overarching goal, and this aim is reflected in the three strategic priorities: growth and sustainability, efficiency and innovation, and top employer. Cultural development also plays an important role in achieving strategic objectives and will support the achievement of the strategic, financial objectives of increasing EBITDA and free cash flow.

A description as well as target values and time horizons for the most important financial and strategic non-financial key figures can be found in the “Control System” chapter, and the development of the key figures during the past fiscal year can be found in the “Economic Report” chapter. The forecast values for the key financial performance indicators for the 2025 fiscal year are included in the “Outlook Report” chapter. Substantial risks and opportunities can be found in the “Risk and Opportunities Report” chapter.

Growth and Sustainability

Fraport.2030 is aligning the Group so that it is well positioned to sustainably participate in the growth in air traffic expected globally – both at the Frankfurt site and internationally. In line with this objective, Fraport is pursuing its climate agenda with the goal of achieving “net zero” by 2045. By making this a top priority, Fraport sees itself as a trusting partner in dialog with its stakeholders. This includes social and community engagement in the regions in which Fraport operates.

On this basis, it is expected that traffic volume at the Frankfurt site will follow the general market trend and sustainable EBITDA growth will be achieved in the segments. The international business is also expected to continue to grow and make a positive contribution to the Group EBITDA and result.

At the Frankfurt site, the construction of Terminal 3 will secure the infrastructure required for growth in the long term. Construction is progressing according to plan, and the new terminal is scheduled to open after the 2026 Easter holidays. The resulting additional capacity of around 20 million passengers will make it possible to gradually modernize older terminal infrastructure. In particular, Terminal 2 will be temporarily closed and modernized.

The purpose of the CargoHub master plan is to put in place the conditions that will strengthen Frankfurt Airport’s role as a leading freight hub in Europe. Infrastructural expansion areas at Frankfurt Airport, the e-commerce segment, and the expected overall economic upswing are expected to contribute to growth in freight in the coming years.

Fraport is continuing the necessary expansion measures at international sites. In Peru, the expansion measures have largely been finalized, with the opening and inauguration of the new terminal set to take place at the end of March 2025. Compared to the 24.5 million passengers carried in 2024, the airport’s capacity will be increasing to around 40 million passengers. At the Antalya site, the terminal expansion is approaching completion. The terminal at Varna Airport in Bulgaria is also to be expanded in the next few years.

In addition, Fraport feels responsible for meeting ecological requirements. In the field of climate protection, Fraport is pursuing the goal of reducing Group-wide greenhouse gas emissions to a maximum of 95,000 metric tons by 2030. Fraport is aiming for a target of net zero by 2045. The “decarbonization master plan” for the Fraport Group was developed as a policy paper for decarbonization. It derives an overall concept for reducing greenhouse gas emissions from the scientific and legal framework conditions as well as the technical possibilities and provides a comprehensive view and structuring of the measures to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Key components include packages of measures to increase energy efficiency, the conversion of the vehicle fleet to electric drives and the procurement of energy from renewable sources.

Fraport uses the passenger numbers at Frankfurt Airport as well as at the Group airports as an indicator for the Group-wide growth in traffic. Fraport controls Group-wide growth in the result by monitoring the financial performance indicators Group EBITDA and Group result, as well as free cash flow. In view of the dynamic economic environment, Fraport is also focusing on securing Group liquidity in the long term.

Efficiency and Innovation

As customer expectations evolve and technological change advances, the priority of “efficiency and innovation” is to ensure reliable and smooth processes. Digital offerings will also be expanded. The use of modern and increasingly autonomous technologies, such as the introduction of more self-drop-off baggage machines, will help to optimize quality and services for airlines and passengers.

As of 2023, Fraport has been responsible for the organization, management, and operation of aviation security services at Frankfurt Airport. The ongoing introduction of new computer tomography (CT) scanners is intended to reduce queues at security controls. Customer experience will improve as a result.

In addition to the passengers, business partners including airlines, retailers, and logistics specialists are of key importance to Fraport. Fraport aims to provide its partners Group-wide with a good commercial basis. Processes and interfaces are technologically supported and continuously improved. This simplifies and accelerates processes. At the Frankfurt site, for example, process stability and quality are to be increased further in order to continuously improve customer satisfaction.

The use of artificial intelligence (AI) will help map the expected passenger growth while enabling the provision of an efficient, innovative service. At the Group airport in Ljubljana, for example, AI software is already being used to optimize the handling process for passengers and airlines in order to manage punctuality and employment more efficiently.

Customer and service orientation will also be improved at the other Group airports. Understanding customer needs and obtaining feedback is essential for this. This is why customer surveys are regularly conducted in Frankfurt and at the Group airports. The global passenger satisfaction reflects the effectiveness of passenger-oriented processes and service offers.

Global passenger satisfaction is the main indicator used to manage efficiency and innovation.

Top Employer

The aim of the third strategic priority “top employer” is to position the Group as one of the best employers in the aviation industry. The foreseeable growth in air traffic and the associated handling of considerable passenger and freight volumes require successful positioning in a labor market facing increasing shortages. To that end, Fraport AG is fundamentally realigning its human resources activities as part of the HRneo program.

To strengthen its position as a top employer, Fraport has systematic development programs and talent management programs in place at all levels of its work. Attractive remuneration and incentive systems are intended to ensure long-term competitiveness in an increasingly scarce labor market.

Fraport respects and promotes personal diversity and attaches great importance to ensuring that this is reflected in the way employees interact with each other. The Group agreement “Conduct of Partnership, Diversity, and Equality in the Workplace” forms the platform for principles such as freedom from discrimination and equal opportunities. Fraport places particular emphasis on development measures aimed at increasing the proportion of women in management positions. The company focuses on the “employee satisfaction” indicator for its monitoring and management of the “top employer” priority.