Esken Limited, an aviation and renewables group, has announced its unaudited interim results for the six months ended 31 August 2023. The company's main operating business will now be the Aviation division, primarily London Southend Airport (LSA). The airport has seen strong passenger demand during the summer season, with a 17.8% increase in passengers compared to the same period last year. Discussions are ongoing for an expanded summer schedule in 2024 with several airlines. The company plans to seek a new owner for LSA to secure long-term growth and shareholder value. Esken has also entered into negotiations to extend the maturity of its exchangeable bond to December 2025 to support the sale process. Esken intends to defend a legal action brought by Carlyle Global Infrastructure Opportunity Fund (CGI) regarding certain technical breaches by LSA with respect to the Convertible Debt Facility. Esken has also entered into non-binding heads of agreement for the sale of two non-core assets and is in discussions to dispose of the remaining non-core assets. The company's financial highlights for the period include a 14.5% improvement in Group Adjusted EBITDA to a loss of £3.5m and an Adjusted EBITDA loss of £2.8m for the aviation business. Passenger numbers at LSA increased by 17.8% to 71,557. Star Handling Limited was sold for £3.9m, generating a £1.6m profit on disposal.