Cost-efficiency - Norway

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Terminal charging zone

Unit cost (KPI#1)

Actual and determined data
Total costs - nominal (M€) 2020-2021 2022 2023 2024
Actual costs 89 49 54 59
Determined costs 88 44 46 48
Difference costs 1 5 8 11
Inflation assumptions 2020-2021 2022 2023 2024
Determined inflation rate NA 2.0% 2.0% 2.0%
Determined inflation index NA 111.2 113.4 115.6
Actual inflation rate NA 6.2% 5.8% 2.8%
Actual inflation index NA 117.7 124.5 128
Difference inflation index (p.p.) NA +6.5 +11.1 +12.3

AUC vs. DUC

In 2024, the terminal AUC was +26.1% (or +401.04 NOK2017, +42.99 €2017) higher than the planned DUC. This results from the combination of significantly higher than planned terminal costs in real terms (+11.9%, or +47.3 MNOK2017, +5.1 M€2017) and significantly lower than planned TNSUs (-11.2%). It should be noted that the actual inflation index in 2024 was +12.3 p.p. higher than planned.

Terminal service units

The difference between actual and planned TNSUs (-11.2%) falls outside the ±10% threshold foreseen in the traffic risk sharing mechanism. The resulting loss of terminal revenues is therefore shared between the ANSP and the airspace users (see the main ANSP loss in Box 11).

Terminal costs by entity

Actual real terminal costs are +11.9% (+5.1 M€2017) higher than planned. This is the result of higher costs for the main ANSP, Avinor (+11.4%, or +4.7 M€2017), the MET service provider (+40.4%, or +0.3 M€2017) and the NSA (+9.2%).

Terminal costs for the main ANSP at charging zone level

Significantly higher than planned terminal costs in real terms for Avinor in 2024 (+11.4%, or +4.7 M€2017) result from:
- Significantly higher staff costs (+45.7%), resulting from a combination of i) higher salary, pension and overtime costs, and ii) a change in cost accounting methodology in 2023, which “results in an increase in staff costs and a reduction in other operating costs accordingly compared to the determined costs”.
- Significantly lower other operating costs (-49.6%), reflecting changes in cost accounting methodology as detailed above.
- Significantly higher depreciation (+11.3%), partly explained by commissioning of new assets.
- Significantly lower cost of capital (-17.1%), explained by “delay in projects, mainly related to the new OSL tower system”.

RP3 summary

When considering the whole of RP3 (2020-2024) for Norway terminal charging zone , actual TNSUs are -3.0% lower than planned, while actual costs in real terms are +5.2% higher than the determined costs (some +101.3 MNOK2017 or +10.9 M€2017). As a result, the weighted average actual unit cost over RP3 (2 144.48 NOK2017 or 229.90 €2017) is +8.5% higher than planned in the PP (1 977.36 NOK2017 or 211.99 €2017).

Actual unit cost incurred by the users (AUCU) (PI#1)

AUCU components (€/SU) – 2024
Components of the AUCU in 2024 €/SU
DUC 148.81
Inflation adjustment 14.72
Cost exempt from cost-sharing 0.30
Traffic risk sharing adjustment 11.24
Traffic adj. (costs not TRS) 0.40
Finantial incentives 0.00
Modulation of charges 0.00
Cross-financing 0.00
Other revenues 0.00
Application of lower unit rate 0.00
Total adjustments 26.66
AUCU 175.46
AUCU vs. DUC + 17.9%
Cost exempt from cost sharing by item - 2024 €'000 €/SU
New and existing investments -211.9 -0.92
Competent authorities and qualified entities costs 7.1 0.03
Eurocontrol costs 0.0 0.00
Pension costs 274.3 1.20
Interest on loans 0.0 0.00
Changes in law 0.0 0.00
Total cost exempt from cost risk sharing 69.5 0.30

The actual terminal unit cost incurred by airspace users (AUCU) in respect of activities performed in 2024 (2 038.76 NOK or 175.46 €) is +17.9% higher than the nominal DUC (1 729.03 NOK or 148.81 €). The difference between these two figures (+309.72 NOK/SU or +26.66 €/SU) is due to:
- the positive inflation adjustment resulting from higher than planned inflation (+170.98 NOK/SU or +14.72 €/SU);
- the impact of adjustments resulting from the costs exempted from cost sharing mechanism (+3.52 NOK/SU or +0.30 €/SU);
- the addition of the traffic risk sharing adjustments (+130.56 NOK/SU or +11.24 €/SU); and
- the addition of the traffic adjustment (+4.66 NOK/SU or +0.40 €/SU) for the costs not subject to traffic risk sharing.
The share of the regulatory result (see items 10 to 14) in the AUCU (before the deduction of other revenues) is -12.6%.

Regulatory result (RR)

Avinor net gain/loss on activity in the Norway terminal charging zone in the year 2024

Avinor reported a net loss of -75.8 MNOK, as a combination of a loss of -56.6 MNOK arising from the cost sharing mechanism, with a loss of -19.2 MNOK arising from the traffic risk sharing mechanism.

Avinor overall regulatory result (RR) for the terminal activity

Ex-post, the overall RR taking into account the net loss from the terminal activity mentioned above (-75.8 MNOK) and the actual RoE (+20.5 MNOK) amounts to -55.3 MNOK (-12.1% of the terminal revenues). The resulting ex-post rate of return on equity is -27.4%, which is lower than the 10.2% planned in the PP. See also Notes 3 and 4 in Box 10 above.

RP3 summary

When considering the whole of RP3 (2020-2024), Avinor generated a cumulative loss in respect of cost sharing of -119.9 MNOK, as actual total costs for RP3 were higher than planned. The traffic risk sharing mechanism generated a loss of -24.4 MNOK. Adding the actual RoE (+104.5 MNOK over RP3) leads to an overall regulatory result of -39.9 MNOK, which corresponds to an average ex-post rate of return on equity of -3.9% (compared to 10.2% initially planned in the PP). See also Notes 3 and 4 in Box 10 above.

Note 3: Ex-ante and ex-post RoE are computed based on the notional gearing of 60% debt used in the RP3 PP. The actual gearing of Avinor should be reported.
Note 4: Ex-post RR does not take into account the application of lower terminal unit rates as per Art. 29.6 in 2020-2021 and 2022 (loss in terminal revenues for Avinor correspond to -181 MNOK for 2020-21 and -40 MNOK for 2022).