The Bermuda airport operator has reported increasing passenger traffic at LF Wade International, but lower revenues and lower profits in the just-released earnings report for the parent company.

The majority owner of Skyport, the airport concessionaire, has reported a net loss of C$6.1 million (about $4.5 million) for the first quarter of 2024.

Aecon Group said that compares with a net loss of C$9.4 million (about $6.9 million) in the same period in 2023.

The company said revenue in the quarter of C$847 million was C$261 million, or 24 per cent lower compared with the same period in 2023.

“With backlog of C$6.3 billion, a strong bid pipeline, and recurring revenue programmes continuing to see robust demand, Aecon is focused on achieving improved profitability and margin predictability, and believes it is positioned to achieve further revenue growth over the next few years,” said Jean-Louis Servranckx, president and chief executive officer of Aecon Group.

“Moving forward, Aecon will continue to pursue and deliver the majority of its work in established markets and under more collaborative project delivery models, while embracing new opportunities to grow in areas linked to the energy transition and in select US and international markets.”

Last September, the Toronto-based company sold a 49.9 per cent interest in Skyport to Connor, Clark & Lunn Infrastructure with Aecon retaining the management contract for the airport.

Skyport is the concessionaire responsible for the Bermuda airport’s operations, maintenance, and commercial functions, and the entity that will manage and coordinate the overall delivery of the airport redevelopment project over a 30-year concession term that commenced in 2017.

Aecon reports its financial performance on the basis of two segments, construction and concessions.

For the quarter, the company said, revenue in the concessions segment of C$3 million was C$14 million lower than the same period in 2023 primarily due to lower reported revenue from the airport due to the commencement of the equity method accounting for the project following the sale of a minority interest in Skyport.

Also in the segment, gross profit decreased by C$5.3 million, and operating profit of C$1.1 million decreased by C$1.3 million compared with an operating profit of C$2.4 million in the first three months of 2023.

This decrease was primarily due to lower operating profit from the airport, Aecon said, partially offset by an increase in management and development fees from the balance of the concession operations.

Under the equity method of accounting, the company said, operating results for Aecon’s interest in Skyport in the first quarter were reported net of financing costs and income taxes, which contributed to the lower quarter-over-quarter operating profit results.

Passenger traffic levels, which are the primary driver of Aecon’s results from operations at the airport, averaged 31 per cent in 2021, 59 per cent in 2022, 75 per cent in 2023, and 81 per cent in the first quarter of 2024, of 2019 pre-pandemic traffic levels.

The company said: “These averages reflect generally improving traffic over time as a percentage of pre-pandemic levels.”

Subsequent to quarter-end, VIports Partners, an Aecon-led consortium, was selected by the US Virgin Islands Port Authority to redevelop the Cyril E King Airport, St Thomas and the Henry E Rohlsen Airport, St Croix, under a collaborative design, build, finance, operate and maintain public-private partnership model.

The company said Aecon Concessions is the development lead and will hold a 50 per cent equity interest in the project’s 40-year concession, and Aecon is the design-build lead.

Financial close is expected in the first quarter of 2025 following a nine-month transition period.

Aecon was also awarded a C$48 million contract by the Government of Anguilla for the Clayton J Lloyd International Airport redevelopment programme package three project.