What future for Cork and Shannon?

ONE MORE THING:THE BOOZ report on future options for both Shannon and Cork airports leaves some questions unanswered.

The consultants have recommended that Shannon could be spun off from the Dublin Airport Authority (DAA) into a new public body, possibly along with Shannon Development and some local bodies. This idea has been floating around for some time.

Cork should remain with the DAA, as it would not be able to manage its €200 million debts as a stand-alone entity, Booz said. Lumbering the DAA with these borrowings is not feasible. Its debts currently stand at about €1 billion. Privatisation for either airport was never going to be a runner, for now at least.

Booz has suggested Shannon might be run by a private operator via a lease arrangement, as is the case with Luton Airport.

This idea was shot down in a report commissioned recently by workers/directors. You would expect this, given that such an arrangement might not be to the benefit of staff at the Co Clare airport.

If Minister for Transport Leo Varadkar were to give this option the green light, where would the €4-€5 million required every year to keep the airport ticking over come from? It’s a tab the DAA picks up.

How would a private operator recover this cost? Shannon handled 1.8 million passengers last year and is losing about €8 million annually.

Increasing passenger charges won’t attract new routes from Ryanair or Aer Lingus, while slashing labour costs won’t be popular locally.

Deciding on the future composition of the DAA is also important in the context of finding a replacement for soon-to-depart chief executive Declan Collier.

Candidates will want to know what exactly they are taking on before declaring their interest. Indeed, it might affect the remuneration package on offer.

We might get some answers in January when Varadkar makes his recommendation to Cabinet.