The Hong Kong Airport Authority said it would run out of space ahead of schedule on stronger-than-expected traffic growth.
The forecast came yesterday as the authority reported a 32 per cent jump in net profit to HK$5.3 billion in the year to March.
Profit at the world's third-busiest airport by international passengers was more than double the HK$2.58 billion for the 2008/2009 fiscal year, while passenger traffic has risen 15 per cent over the past three years.
Higher contributions from the retailing and advertising divisions, attributable profit from its 35 per cent stake in Hangzhou Xiaoshan International Airport as well as cuts in its debt level helped to buoy earnings.
Retailing and advertising accounted for 37 per cent of total revenue last year, for the first time overtaking flight-related operations such as parking and security fees.
The number of passengers grew to 54.9 million, up by 6.6 per cent from a year earlier, while cargo volume dipped 5.9 per cent year-on-year to 3.9 million tonnes on waning US and European consumption.
'The traffic volume at Chek Lap Kok is two to three years ahead of what we forecast in the 2030 master plan,' authority chief executive Stanley Hui Hon-chung said.