Dortmund Airport continues to expand its solar power generation
At today’s meeting of the Supervisory Board of Flughafen Dortmund GmbH, the auditors officially confirmed the preliminary annual results for 2025. In addition, the Supervisory Board discussed the planned investments in the airport’s sustainable development as well as measures to expand the infrastructure.
The airport’s management previously presented the provisional annual results for 2025 at the March meeting. Thanks to positive traffic growth, the airport closed the past year with a record number of 3.2 million passengers, representing an increase of 3.5 per cent compared with the previous year and, relative to the pre-COVID level of 2019, an increase of 19 per cent. At the same time, revenue rose by 1.7 per cent as compared with 2024. However, due to disproportionately rising costs, particularly in connection with the introduction of the universally binding collective agreement for ground handling services, the annual result deteriorated from a loss of €1.8 million in the previous year to a loss of €6.3 million. The auditors also confirmed the operating result excluding regulatory costs (EBITDA), which fell from €5.1 million to €971,000 over the same period. EU EBITDA stood at €6.5 million.
The management remains optimistic about traffic growth in 2026. Following a slight 3.7 per cent decline in passenger numbers in the first quarter due to the loss of Ryanair capacity, demand picked up significantly with the start of the summer schedule in April. Cumulatively, passenger numbers from January to the end of May stood at around 1.3 million travellers, 8.9 per cent above the previous year. With five new routes introduced so far, as well as the previously announced routes to Oradea, Palermo, Milan and Rome, the range of destinations is being specifically expanded, particularly to Southern Europe.
Since 2015, Dortmund Airport has sourced 100 per cent of its electricity from renewable energy. Photovoltaic systems on two aircraft hangars and the administration building also contribute to an environmentally friendly energy supply. Today’s decision to build an additional photovoltaic system on the terminal roofs is set to significantly expand the airport’s solar power capacity. With a module area of around 2,400 m², this is set to be the largest solar installation at the site to date.
The expected annual yield of around 550,000 kWh covers approximately 12 per cent of the terminal building’s total electricity requirements and is intended to be used entirely for the airport’s own consumption. This will save around 260 tonnes of CO₂ annually compared to a conventional electricity supply.
The expansion of on-site electricity generation not only increases independence from external energy price fluctuations but also strengthens the long-term cost-efficiency of airport operations.
Against the backdrop of the Entry-Exit System (EES), which has been gradually introduced since October 2025, border control processes at the external borders of the Schengen area have been digitised and largely automated through the collection of biometric data (facial image and fingerprints). The aim of the system is to effectively prevent identity fraud, record the entry and exit of third-country nationals more efficiently, systematically monitor lengths of stay, and gradually replace manual process steps such as passport stamping.
To accommodate the resulting increased demands during the implementation phase and simultaneously ensure smooth processing even during high passenger volumes, the Federal Police’s control capacities in the area of Gates 0 to 2 are being expanded. The number of control lanes is to be increased from the current four to six in future, in order to ensure efficient and orderly passenger processing, particularly when several non-Schengen flights are taking place simultaneously.