The French government this week announced plans to introduce a proposed ‘green tax’ on the transport sector in 2024, which will affect the country’s largest airports and likely increase travel costs.
Announced as part of the government’s 2024 budget plans, the proposed measure will see a 4.6 per cent tax imposed on airports with operating revenues exceeding €120 million, affecting major transport hubs such as Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport (CDG) and Paris Orly Airport.
Airport operator Groupe ADP, which manages both Paris CDG and Orly, said it intends to transfer approximately 75 per cent of the tax to airlines via an increase in tariffs over a period of two-to-three years, with the first increase applied from 1 April 2024.
Air France CEO Anne Rigail criticised the move on French radio this week, saying the tax is “not at all good news” and risks “hurting French airlines” as several of the carrier’s low-cost rivals operate from smaller regional airports.
The French government expects to raise some €600 million annually from the tax, which Airports’ organisation ACI Europe said will also affect the likes of Nice, Marseille, Lyon and Toulouse airports.
The organisation has also urged the French government to reconsider its plan, stating the proposed tax would impede the airports’ “ambitious decarbonisation plans” as well as impact “their competitive position and their connectivity”.
ACI Europe director general Olivier Jankovec said: “Squeezing airports that are leading decarbonisation efforts for tax revenue is ill-advised and amounts to policy greenwashing.
“Achieving net zero for European aviation will require more than €820 billion in investments across the entire ecosystem comprising aircraft manufacturers, airlines, airports and air navigation service providers. Further taxing the sector will only make such investments more difficult and threatens our shared goals,” he said in a statement.
The proposed tax follows the French government’s recent ban on some domestic flights as the country seeks to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050.