Sustainable airport development: a financial modelling and simulation approach for scenario-based decision making

Kurzfassung

The green transformation of the aviation sector requires significant investments from airports into new infrastructure or changes in energy supply facilities (e.g. hydrogen infrastructure). Understanding the economic implications of these investments across different airport sizes and market conditions is critical for airport operators and other stakeholders such as airlines, regulators, and public entities. However, existing financial reporting standards do not provide sufficient guidance for airports undergoing the sustainability transition. Previous studies predominantly focus either on evaluating environmental sustainability aspects or on the assessment of investment decisions but rarely integrate both perspectives. This study addresses this gap by developing an adaptable financial modelling framework that assesses the impact of sustainability investments on the economic and environmental dimensions of sustainability. It focuses on the economic implications and includes emission calculations (within a linked extension of the model) to examine the interdependencies between economic and environmental sustainability. The simulation-based approach enables the consideration of various developments and existing uncertainties, thereby providing the structure for an analysis that demonstrates the impact of these investments. The implementation of the framework is demonstrated by providing examples of potential scenario analyses. Financial statements and key performance indicators (KPIs) are derived and analysed to assess the model’s applicability. The results aim to support airport operators in making informed investment decisions that balance financial viability with sustainability goals.