Air Macau’s financial woes deepen with a significant 2024 loss (end of monopoly)

ste25

Ainda que as receitas operacionais tenham crescido em termos anuais, fomentadas pelo aumento de quase 6% no número de passageiros, a Air Macau encerrou o exercício financeiro do primeiro semestre deste ano com prejuízos líquidos de 433,6 milhões de patacas, correspondendo a cerca de 67% do total das perdas verificadas ao longo do ano transacto, segundo a Air China, sua accionista maioritária. Entre Janeiro e Junho, a companhia de bandeira da RAEM transportou 43% dos passageiros que utilizaram o Aeroporto de Macau

https://jtm.com.mo/local/prejuizo-da-air-macau-subiu-2-para-433-milhoes/

jul25

State-owned Air China and the Macau government have significantly increased their stakes in Air Macau, the city’s financially troubled flag carrier, following a fresh capital injection aimed at shoring up the airline’s solvency.

Air China, Air Macau’s largest shareholder, now holds a 74.94 percent stake, up from 66.92 percent, according to data released this week by the Macau Public Assets Supervision and Administration Bureau (DSGAP).

The Macau government also raised its stake from about 21.5 percent to 24.09 percent, solidifying its position as the second-largest shareholder.

This move follows Air Macau’s request late last year for a MOP1.6 billion (US$200 million) capital increase from shareholders, as the airline faced a potential breach of local solvency requirements that could have led to dissolution.

The carrier posted a net loss of MOP677 million in 2024, representing a 187 percent year-on-year increase and marking its fifth consecutive year in the red. Cumulative losses between 2020 and 2024 now exceed MOP3.75 billion, with the steepest annual deficit of MOP1.04 billion recorded in 2020 at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic.

In an annual report published in the Macau Official Gazette last month, Air Macau attributed its widening losses in 2024 to “multiple factors such as intensified market competition in the post-pandemic period.”

End of monopoly

Following the latest capital injection—the fourth since 2009—Air China and the Macau government now collectively hold over 99 percent of Air Macau’s shares. Sociedade de Turismo e Diversões de Macau SA (STDM), the local conglomerate founded by the late casino tycoon Stanley Ho, is the third-largest shareholder, holding just a 0.97 percent stake, according to DSGAP data.

Other minority stakeholders, with only symbolic shares, include: Taiwan’s Evergreen Airways Service, Portugal’s state-owned IPE (Macau) – Investimentos e Participações Empresariais, World Trade Center Macau, and Macau Insurance Company Limited.

The shareholding restructuring comes amid a shifting regulatory landscape for the city’s aviation sector. Air Macau’s monopoly as Macau’s sole home-based carrier is set to end in February 2026, when the city’s newly approved Civil Aviation Activities Law comes into effect, opening the market to new entrants.

Originally granted a 25-year concession in 1995 for exclusive rights to operate passenger, cargo, and mail services, Air Macau’s monopoly was scheduled to expire in 2020 but was extended twice.

As of the end of 2024, Air Macau operated a fleet of 23 aircraft with an average age of 8.54 years. Following the latest injection, the company’s total share capital stands at nearly MOP2.38 billion, according to the DSGAP.

https://www.macaubusiness.com/air-china-macau-govt-boost-stakes-in-air-macau/

 junm25

Macau’s flag carrier, Air Macau, reported a substantial net loss of 677 million patacas (US$83.8 million) for the 2024 financial year, an increase of 187 percent from the 236 million pataca (US$29.2 million) loss recorded in 2023. 

This figure, extracted from the company’s annual report and published in the Macao government’s Boletim Oficial (official gazette), aligns closely with the 595 million renminbi (approximately 670.7 million patacas or US$83.1 million) loss previously indicated by its majority shareholder, Air China. 

Wu Lixin, representing Air Macau’s board of directors, attributed the challenging 2024 results to the “impact of multiple factors in the post-pandemic period, such as intensified market competition.” 

This marks the airline’s fifth consecutive year of losses, accumulating over 3.7 billion patacas (US$458 million) in net losses between 2020 and 2024, more than double the profits garnered in the preceding decade.

In response to the airline’s persistent financial difficulties, the Macao government approved a 340 million pataca (US$42.1 million)  increase in Air Macau’s share capital for 2025. This constitutes the fourth financial injection from major shareholders since 2009.

[See more: Air Macau has launched a new wide-body aircraft service]

Despite the escalating losses, Air Macau experienced a 13.6 percent rise in operating revenues, reaching 3.53 billion patacas (US$437.4 million) in 2024. 

This improvement was largely propelled by a 56.6 percent increase in passenger numbers, totalling 3.21 million, which represents approximately 88 percent of the 3.66 million passengers recorded in the pre-pandemic year of 2019. Furthermore, the flight occupancy rate improved by 2.93 percentage points to 74.59 percent over the year.

The report also highlighted Air Macau’s “excellent safety record,” with 65,147 hours of “safe flights” in 2024, an annual increase of 25.17 percent. In 2024, the carrier introduced two new routes to Kuala Lumpur and Taichung, operating a total of 24,170 flights, a 49.1 percent increase from 2023. 

Additionally, the airline continues to invest in its Local Cadet Pilot Training Program, which has enrolled approximately 50 trainees across eight groups since its inception in 2016. This initiative is aimed at building a solid and stable team of qualified professionals for Macao’s civil aviation industry.”

As of the end of last year, Air Macau’s fleet comprised 23 Airbus aircraft, three more than in 2023, with an average age of 8.54 years.

This article was drafted by AI before being reviewed by an editor.

https://macaonews.org/news/business/air-macau-financial-results-2024/