TAP cuts first-quarter loss to €39.9 million
Portugal’s TAP narrowed its first-quarter loss as revenue rose 11%, but warned higher fuel prices will put pressure on the coming quarters.
TAP posted a net loss of €39.9 million in the first quarter, a 63.1% improvement from the €108.2 million loss a year earlier, ECOnews reports. The result matters for investors and businesses tracking Portugal’s flag carrier as the airline said stronger operations helped offset a seasonally weaker start to the year.
Operating revenue rose 11% to €914.4 million, driven mainly by higher ticket sales, better unit revenue and a 3.9% increase in capacity. The maintenance business also contributed, with revenue in that segment up 31.8%.
Between January and March, TAP carried 3.7 million passengers, up 6.4% from a year earlier, and operated 27,300 flights, a 1.5% increase. Traffic grew faster than capacity, lifting the load factor by 4.8 percentage points to 83.5%, with the strongest growth coming from South America and North America, in line with the airline’s strategy of expanding its transatlantic operation.
Recurring EBITDA reached €95.5 million and recurring EBIT was negative €36.1 million, improvements of €92.6 million and €83.1 million respectively from the first quarter of 2025. TAP said it ended March with liquidity of €879.8 million, while its net financial debt-to-EBITDA ratio improved to 2.2 times.
Chief executive Luís Rodrigues said bookings remain resilient, supporting high occupancy and better unit revenue, but warned that “the huge impact of fuel prices will pressure the coming quarters”. He said that effect should be partly offset by disciplined capacity management, cost control and pricing adjustments through a fuel surcharge.
Originally published at Eco.pt