After a few difficult years and a near-death experience, it seems that Norwegian is finally out of the woods. Despite posting a small operational loss of 39M NOK (around $3.8 million as per the exchange rate on February 15, 2023) in the last quarter of 2022, the Nordic airline managed to consolidate its recovery, closing in the black for the second year in a row.
The Scandinavian budget carrier said its earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) were 1502M NOK (approximately $146M).
Norwegian’s CEO, Geir Karlsen highlighted the fact that this positive result had been achieved despite the multiple economics and operational challenges the airline industry faced in 2022.
“We now close a chapter on 2022, a year where our operations have performed well, in spite of sweeping industry challenges across European airports. For the full year, we delivered an operating profit (EBIT) of NOK 1,502 million despite record-high fuel prices and a strong US dollar,” Karlsen stated.
Passenger numbers are also on the rise, with Norwegian transporting 4.6 million passengers in Q4 2022, nearly 50% more passengers compared to 3.1 million during the same period the year before. Load factor was also up, with a recorder 81.4% compared to 77%.
The airline has already shown its confidence in future growth by announcing, on February 6, 2023, that it had secured an additional six Boeing 737-8 MAX aircraft from Air Lease Corporation (ALC). These aircraft, which are expected to join Norwegian’s fleet before the upcoming summer season, will bring the total aircraft operated by the airline to 81, up from 70 at the close of 2022.