Intermoney | Aena (AENA) (Buy, Target Price €215/share) announced on Tuesday the agreement between the Ministry of Transport and the Generalitat de Catalunya, approving the operator’s plan for the expansion of El Prat Josep Tarradellas airport in Barcelona.
The work, which will involve an investment of some €3.2 billion, will consist of extending one of the runways by 500 metres to a length of 3,160 metres, which will allow the infrastructure to serve all types of intercontinental flights, as well as the remodelling of terminals 1 and 2, among other initiatives.
The investment will be included in the next DORA 3 (2027-2032). Aena stresses that the planning and extension of the works are compatible with the preservation of the environment, the main issue that had delayed the agreement between the parties.
Assessment: Good news for Aena, and especially for Barcelona, which unlocks a key investment to adapt El Prat to the growth in number and size of air traffic. The agreement between the Generalitat and the State has been reached despite the opposition of the government partners of both institutions. El Prat had a traffic of just over 55 million passengers in 2024, a year in which it grew by 10%, finally surpassing pre-pandemic levels. Aena, for its part, served 309 million people (up 9%), although in 2025 the operator expects growth of around 4%. We expect in 2025 for Aena an EBITDA of €3,774 million (up 8%).
