Menzies sees China growth after Hong Kong Airport services deal

Menzies Aviation, one of the world’s largest aviation services companies, is targeting expansion in China that could generate a revenue increase of around 20%, according to Chief Executive Officer Philipp Joeinig.

London-headquartered Menzies is weighing new business opportunities on the mainland via joint ventures, Joeinig said in an interview this week after the company made its first big push into Hong Kong.

Menzies earlier this month agreed to acquire Jardine Matheson Holdings Ltd.’s 50% stake in aviation services company — Jardine Aviation Services Group. The Hong Kong-based business offers a slew of check in and baggage handling services at Hong Kong International Airport. No price was disclosed.

“The first step is to do Hong Kong right, to prove to the market we can add value,” Joeinig said. “The second step is to sit down with CNAC and look at opportunities,” he said, with reference to China National Aviation Corp., which owns the other half of Jardine Aviation Services Group.

CNAC itself is part of a broader company that has a controlling stake in Air China Ltd. CNAC and Menzies also operate a separate venture at Macau airport.

China has been slow to restore international flights after Covid, in part due to a lack of airport workers and ground handling staff.

“The opportunities in China are in the scale of zero dollars to $500 million depending on how much we want to invest, how willing we are to take risks and how many things we do at the same time,” Joeinig said.

Menzies, which was taken private in August 2022 by Kuwait’s Agility Public Warehouse Co KSC, is on track to generate $2.5 billion in revenue in 2024, Joeinig added.

Menzies already provides services to around 260 airports worldwide, although its exposure to date to Asia has been limited. Its competitors include Swissport International AG, Dnata Aviation Services Ltd. and Singapore’s SATS Ltd.