14th Dec 2005 11:32
Ryanair Holdings PLC14 December 2005 RYANAIR ANNOUNCES NEW 10 YEAR AGREEMENT WITH BRUSSELS CHARLEROI 5 NEW ROUTES AND $240M INVESTMENT NEW ROUTES FROM BRUSSELS TO FARO, NIMES, MALAGA, SALZBURG, VALENCIA 1 MILLION FREE* SEAT SALE TO CELEBRATE Ryanair, Europe's No. 1 low fares airline today (Wednesday, 14th December 2005)announced a new 10 year agreement committing it to develop Brussels CharleroiAirport until 2016. As part of this agreement Ryanair will base a 4th aircraftin Charleroi, bringing its total investment in aircraft at Brussels Charleroi to$240M. The airline will open 5 new routes, from Brussels to Faro, Nimes, Malaga,Salzburg and Valencia from April 2006 onwards, bringing the total number ofRyanair routes from Brussels Charleroi to 16. These 5 new routes will deliveranother quarter of a million passengers p.a. and bring Ryanair's annual trafficat Charleroi to 2.3M . Announcing this new agreement, and Ryanair's increased investment in BSCA,Michael O'Leary, Ryanair's CEO said: "Our new 10 year deal with Brussels Charleroi Airport commits Ryanair to invest $240M in new aircraft and deliver 2.3M passengers p.a. These 2.3M passengers will save €230M annually over the high fares charged at Zaventem Airport and based on ACI** figures these passengers will generate 2,300 jobs at the airport and in the local Walloon region. In addition, visitors brought to the region by Ryanair's low fares will spend over €200M p.a. "In 2001, Ryanair launched its first base in continental Europe at Brussels Charleroi and since then it has transformed Charleroi from an unknown, unused airfield into the fastest growing airport in Belgium. BSCA for its part has responded by recently announcing plans for a new terminal capable of handling 5M passengers p.a. which will be opened in 2007. "The passenger growth at Charleroi airport is unrivaled elsewhere in Belgium and has been achieved as a result of Ryanair's massive investment in aircraft and international advertising to promote low fare flights to and from Brussels Charleroi. The recent ill-informed press speculation surrounding the current investigation into Promocy is completely false and we look forward to co-operating with the Belgian authorities on the basis of the following facts: + •Brussels Charleroi has increased its traffic tenfold since 2001 + •BSCA has developed into a thriving and profitable international airport operator + •Promocy was set up to promote this development of traffic at Brussels Charleroi and is funded entirely by Ryanair and airport revenues. + •Promocy receives/has received no funding from the Walloon region. + •Any payments made by Promocy to Ryanair are to fund advertising and promotional activity of routes from Brussels Charleroi + •During its 2-yr investigation the EU raised no concerns over the funding of Promocy. "To celebrate these 5 new routes and the continued growth of Brussels Charleroi, Ryanair is giving away 1M FREE* seats on www.ryanair.com until midnight Monday". * excludes taxes and charges** Airports Council International - The Social and Economic Impact of Airports in Europe, Jan 2004 Ends. Wednesday, 14th December 2005 For further information: Peter Sherrard - Ryanair Pauline McAlester - Murray ConsultantsTel: 00 353 1 812 1228 Tel: 00 353 1 4980 300 This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock ExchangeRelated Shares:
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