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London City Airport Pauses Expansion Plans on Slow Recovery

London City Airport Pauses Expansion Plans on Slow Recovery

London City Airport Ltd. will pause the building of the next stage of a 480 million pound ($628 million) expansion due to a slower-than-expected recovery of the U.K. aviation industry from the Covid-19 pandemic.

The airport operator will postpone plans to extend its passenger terminal and new east pier from the end of this year, the company said in a statement on Thursday. The construction of eight new aircraft stands and a full-length parallel taxiway by the end of 2020 will still be completed.

With business travel largely curtailed, the airport expects 2020 passenger volumes to be far lower than the 5.1 million who flew last year. London City is favored by business travelers for its short boarding times and proximity to both the City and Canary Wharf financial centers, and reopened on June 21 after being closed to traffic since March.

The airport is owned by a consortium led by Alberta Investment Management Corporation, the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan Board and OMERS Private Markets, which acquired the hub in 2016.

©2020 Bloomberg L.P.