The Schiphol airport group on Friday repeated its now familiar call for new discussions over the 500,000 flight movements cap in place through 2020.

The Dutch airport, third-largest in Europe, effectively reached that limit last year. Schiphol CEO Jos Nijhuis said in the group’s annual earnings statement it is vital to agree now about how Schiphol can safely and responsibly continue to grow past 2020.

Schiphol handled nearly 497,00 takeoffs and landings in 2017 when 68.5 million passengers moved through the Amsterdam airport. Extra measures were needed to smooth the passenger flow during peak periods.

‘This calls for new agreements on the long-term safe, smart and sustainable development of aviation beyond 2020 to enable us to continue fulfilling our socio-economic role – connecting the Netherlands to the rest of the world,’ Nijhuis said.

The Schiphol group, which also operates Eindhoven, Rotterdam and Lelystad airports, reported net profit 8.7% higher at €280m on turnover of €1.458bn, an increase of 1.5%.

Revenue generated by retail concessions and parking increased.  Average retail spending per departing passenger in the shops behind the security checks at Schiphol fell by 2.2% to €13.35 (€13.65). At the same time, average spending per departing passenger in catering facilities rose by 8.4% to €4.68 (€4.32), Schiphol said.