Aerodrom Nikola Tesla, the state-controlled company that owns the assets of Belgrade’s main airport and supervises its concession, increased its net profit to RSD 330mn (€2.8mn) in the first half of 2026, one-third more than during the same period last year. The result reflects a further increase in concession income from the airport’s operator, although the company’s rapidly expanding cost base and its dependence on a single contractual revenue stream remain important qualifications.
Revenue from the concession fee reached RSD 414mn between January and June, up from RSD 370mn a year earlier. The increase of RSD 44mn, or almost 12 per cent, broadly corresponds with the continued expansion of passenger traffic at Belgrade Nikola Tesla Airport. The airport handled 4.2mn passengers in the first half, representing year-on-year growth of 7.2 per cent, while second-quarter traffic reached approximately 2.4mn passengers.
The concession fee is now the central operating revenue source for Aerodrom Nikola Tesla. The listed company ceased to operate the airport directly after VINCI Airports assumed operational control in December 2018 under a 25-year concession. The airport is operated by Belgrade Airport, the locally incorporated VINCI subsidiary, while Aerodrom Nikola Tesla remains the asset-owning and concession-monitoring company.
Under the publicly disclosed elements of the agreement, the concessionaire is required to pay an annual fee calculated according to contractual provisions, with the amount expected to fall between approximately €4.5mn and €16mn and to be no lower than 5 per cent of gross revenue. The complete concession agreement has never been published, limiting the ability of minority shareholders and the wider market to assess the detailed formula, adjustment mechanisms and possible contractual protections available to either party.
The latest payment therefore provides an indirect signal of the airport operator’s commercial performance. Higher passenger volumes support aeronautical income from passenger-service charges, landing fees and infrastructure use, while the enlarged terminal and wider network create room for higher non-aeronautical revenue from retail, food and beverage, parking, advertising and property-related activities.
Belgrade Airport served a record 8.9mn passengers in 2025, an increase of approximately 6.5 per cent from the previous year. Traffic has continued to expand in 2026, supported by additional airline capacity, high load factors and the continued development of Air Serbia’s Belgrade hub. During the summer season, passengers have access to a record 118 destinations, including nine new routes and a direct Belgrade–Toronto service.
The operating company is also extending the C-side of the terminal complex, where three additional gates, three passenger boarding bridges and four aircraft parking positions are planned. More than €360mn has been invested in the airport since the concession was signed, against VINCI’s original commitment to an investment programme exceeding €730mn over the concession period.
For Aerodrom Nikola Tesla, however, passenger growth does not translate directly into an equivalent increase in profit. Total operating revenue rose from approximately RSD 780mn in the first half of 2025 to slightly more than RSD 1bn in the first six months of 2026. Operating expenses increased at a somewhat faster pace, climbing from around RSD 600mn to more than RSD 800mn.
Most of the increase came from production-service costs, showing that the asset-owning company is developing a more substantial expenditure profile despite no longer operating the airport itself. This matters because the company’s economic appeal has largely rested on the relative predictability of concession income and the expectation of a limited operating cost base. A sustained increase in service and project expenditure would weaken that relatively simple cash-flow proposition.
The first-half net profit of RSD 330mn is already close to the RSD 340mn earned during the whole of 2025. Last year’s result was itself almost 20 per cent higher than the RSD 287mn recorded in 2024, helped by an increase of more than RSD 100mn in annual concession-fee income. Yet the comparison also shows that profit growth in 2026 has been influenced by factors beyond the concession payment alone, since the fee rose by less than the overall increase in earnings.
The most significant balance-sheet change did not come from airport traffic or concession revenue but from a new share issue completed at the beginning of the year. Aerodrom Nikola Tesla raised approximately RSD 3.8bn, equivalent to about €32mn, through a capital increase. The Serbian state acquired almost two-thirds of the offered shares, investing roughly €20mn.
This injection lifted the company’s cash and cash-equivalent position to RSD 4.2bn at the end of June, compared with RSD 1.4bn at the same point last year. The increase reverses the sharp deterioration recorded during 2025, when year-end cash fell by almost 60 per cent, from RSD 1.77bn to approximately RSD 726mn.
The stronger liquidity position is therefore primarily the result of shareholder funding rather than cash generated from the concession. The cash-flow statement shows that inflows from operating activities declined from nearly RSD 1bn in the first half of 2025 to slightly more than RSD 700mn in the corresponding period this year. At the same time, operating cash outflows rose from about RSD 200mn to RSD 1.1bn, largely because approximately RSD 900mn was paid to domestic suppliers or advanced under existing arrangements.
A large part of the newly raised capital is intended to finance the reconstruction of the Museum of Aviation, an asset owned by Serbia’s Ministry of Defence. Aerodrom Nikola Tesla is expected to manage the museum for the next 20 years. The project represents a departure from the company’s narrow role as concession supervisor and airport-asset owner, introducing construction, cultural-asset management and execution risks that are not directly tied to the economics of passenger traffic.
The financial rationale will depend on the eventual management agreement, the level of capital expenditure, the treatment of operating losses and the commercial rights associated with the museum. Without a transparent project budget and revenue model, investors cannot determine whether the investment will create a sustainable return or primarily fulfil a public-policy function funded through the listed company.
The capital increase has also reshaped the company’s shareholder structure. Following the new issuance, the Serbian state owns 82.9 per cent, while minority shareholders hold 17.1 per cent. Although the state was the largest subscriber, the enlargement of the share base slightly reduced its percentage ownership compared with the structure before the transaction.
Basic earnings per share increased from RSD 7 to RSD 8.7 in the first half. The improvement is positive, but the enlarged number of outstanding shares means that future earnings must grow sufficiently to offset dilution from the capital increase. The museum investment will therefore be judged not merely by whether it preserves the company’s cash position but by whether it produces returns above the opportunity cost of the new equity.
Aerodrom Nikola Tesla shares are currently trading at approximately RSD 2,090 on the Belgrade Stock Exchange. The price has recovered from a low of RSD 1,760 reached in late February but remains below the RSD 2,500 peak recorded in December 2025. The shares had traded at around RSD 2,350 when the capital increase was launched, while the new securities were issued at RSD 1,278, giving subscribers a substantial discount to the prevailing market price.
At the current quotation, the company’s market capitalisation is close to RSD 80bn, or slightly less than €700mn. That valuation is high relative to reported earnings and annual concession-fee income. It reflects more than the company’s current profit: investors are effectively valuing its airport assets, long-dated concession cash flows, substantial liquidity, strategic position and the potential residual value of the airport when the concession expires.
The concession itself was structured as a transaction with a stated nominal value of approximately €1.46bn, including an upfront payment of €501mn, minimum annual concession fees and an investment commitment of more than €730mn. The upfront payment delivered an immediate return to the Serbian state and minority shareholders, while the continuing fee provides the listed asset owner with recurring income linked to the airport’s commercial expansion.
Belgrade’s position in south-east European aviation has strengthened considerably since the agreement was signed. Passenger traffic has risen by almost 60 per cent over eight years, the destination network has expanded from roughly 60 routes to more than 100, and the airport has become increasingly important as a transfer hub. Continued growth towards and beyond 10mn passengers a year would support higher concession income, provided the contractual formula transmits operating revenue growth to the asset owner.
The first-half results nevertheless underline the distinction between the success of the airport and the financial performance of Aerodrom Nikola Tesla as a listed company. The former is driven by passengers, airlines, routes, airport charges and commercial spending. The latter increasingly depends on the concession formula, expenditure discipline, capital allocation and the terms under which new public-sector projects are placed on its balance sheet.
The 12 per cent increase in concession-fee income confirms that rising airport activity is producing a larger payment to the asset owner. The more consequential development in 2026 is the RSD 3.8bn capital increase, which has given Aerodrom Nikola Tesla the liquidity to expand beyond concession supervision. The value created from that cash will now depend on whether the museum reconstruction and any subsequent assignments generate measurable commercial returns without diluting the predictable income profile that has supported the company’s market valuation.
