The French government may have to pay up to 425 million euros to Vinci, the company behind the abandoned Notre-Dame-des-Landes airport project, despite no physical construction having taken place. The project was canceled in 2018, and the original 2010 contract requires the state to compensate Vinci for lost profits. Vinci had invested nine million euros over seven years in developing the project, but the administrative court in Nantes rejected a claim for 1.6 billion euros in April 2024, limiting the compensation to the termination and lost profits. The previous concession agreement, signed in 2010, remains in effect until a new concession is assigned, expected by the end of 2026. The 55-year concession agreement, signed by the state with Aéroports du Grand Ouest (AGO), a company in which Vinci holds 85%, covers the construction of the new airport, as well as the operation of Nantes-Atlantique and Saint-Nazaire-Montoir airports. The agreement was approved in 2010 and formally recognized by the Council of State. However, in January 2018, then-Prime Minister Édouard Philippe canceled the project for reasons of public interest, triggering the need to terminate the concession. The termination does not simply involve the reimbursement of expenses but also compensation for lost profits during the years the airport would have operated. In 2018, the Council of State estimated the compensation could range from 305 to 425 million euros. However, the administrative court in Nantes rejected this calculation, stating such amounts would be "devoid of any economic sense" and risk granting undue favors to private entities. The court emphasized the unusually low initial investment, which limits the compensation to nearly 47 times the original amount. Vinci initially claimed 1.6 billion euros, but the court rejected the main request, stating the state had not committed a fault. The court ruled that Vinci can only claim compensation for the termination and lost profits, which must consider the potential profits from operating the existing Nantes-Atlantique airport. The compensation amount remains uncertain, as it depends on the future operations of the airport. Meanwhile, the state continues to operate Nantes-Atlantique under the old concession agreement, as the new tender for the concession was postponed until the end of 2026. Additional costs for renovating the airport and compensating nearby residents for noise and property issues further complicate the financial picture.