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“The combination will become a leading worldwide airport operator group, with a long lasting growth perspective.“ |
Pierre Graff Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Aéroports de Paris |
TURKEY/FRANCE. Aéroports de Paris Management, a wholly owned subsidiary of Aéroports de Paris, is to acquire a 38% stake in TAV Airports Holding, the powerful Turkish aviation group, for US$874 million. The partnership will create one of the largest airport alliances in the world, managing directly or indirectly around 180 million passengers in 37 airports.
The transaction values TAV Airports Holding equity at US$2.3 billion, the equivalent of TL11.3 per share and offers a 32% premium to TAV’s latest closing price. TAV is majority owned by two Turkish companies, Tepe Insaat and Akfen Holding, each of which is selling a share in the business. AdP is also acquiring a 49% share in TAV Yatirim Holding, owner of TAV Construction, for US$49 million.
AdP said that the investment “fits perfectly” with its international strategy, which focuses on:
– Investing in international airports serving above 10 million passengers with strong EBITDA growth potential and located in OECD and BRIC countries
– building strong partnerships by leveraging aeronautical and non-aeronautical expertise
The parties said they would be able:
– to leverage their respective skills and geographical footprint to boost international developments in particular outside Turkey,
– to share know-hows and best practices across their respective airports
– to further grow the asset base through a more systematic cross-selling between Aéroports de Paris and TAV,
– to foster ambitious HR career paths for the employees of both groups.
TAV’s “˜one-stop-shop’ strategy to airport activities was a key attraction, noted AdP. The Turkish company aims to maximise its returns through specialist subsidiaries across all elements of the airport value chain (retail, food & beverage, engineering, IT, security and others). Along with Unifree (in which Gebr Heinemann is principal shareholder) it has a 50% stake in ATÜ Duty Free, and it also owns a majority stake in BTA Catering, which operates the main F&B concessions at TAV locations.
Aéroports de Paris said it expects to achieve double-digit returns on equity from this transaction. The transaction is expected to be EPS accretive as of 2013. The investment in TAV will be financed using existing cash and already secured acquisition debt financing.
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TAV Airports Holding CEO and President Sani Şener says the AdP partnership will create new growth opportunities |
Hamdi Akın and Dr. M. Sani Sener will continue in their positions as Chairman of the Board of Directors and CEO & President of TAV Airports Holding, respectively. The Board of Directors will consist of eleven members. While Tepe Insaat & Akfen Holding together will appoint three members, Aéroports de Paris will also appoint three members of the Board of Directors. The CEO & President will serve as the executive Board member and there will be four independent Board members.
Dr. Sani Sener said: “We believe that our brand, which was born out of the privatization of Istanbul Atatürk International Airport and which we expanded to 12 airports in five countries in just 12 years, will be able to target even more ambitious goals through the collaboration we have realised with Aéroports de Paris, one of world’s leading airport operators.
“The partnership of these two global airport brands in managing and building airports will result in the extensive know-how stemming from the operation of 37 airports serving 180 million passengers around the world. We have brushed shoulders in the past with AdP all around the world, sometimes as a partner and sometimes as a competitor. We know each other very well in the aviation industry. Aéroports de Paris is at the moment the firm managing the projects at Muscat and Tripoli airports. We have also worked together at the Emirates A-380 aircraft hangars project for Dubai Airports.
“We are sure that this collaboration will further enhance the success we have gained as a Turkish firm and will lay new growth opportunities before us. We will continue to work towards creating the best value for all our stakeholders, especially for our employees and our customers. As TAV, we have always aimed at becoming the best. Today, we have sealed a great strategic partnership to this effect. Our collaboration with AdP will also be a source of major capital inflow to Turkey hence we will be able to pursue our dreams and targets one step further.”
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(Top) Senior management from TAV and AdP announce the French company’s acquisition of a 38% stake in the Turkish group; TAV President Sani Sener (left) with AdP Chairman Pierre Graff (above) |
Pierre Graff, Chairman and CEO of Aéroports de Paris, said: “The partnership with TAV is a major strategic investment for Aéroports de Paris group. Fully in line with our international strategy, this transaction will have a strong positive impact on the Group’s performance. The combination will become a leading worldwide airport operator group, with a long lasting growth perspective.
“TAV is a high performing airport operator with a talented management, which has achieved continuous growth and impressive results in the past few years. Moreover, Turkey is one of the fastest growing countries in OECD with a favourable business environment. The high quality of the airport portfolio, in Turkey and abroad, is very attractive, as all airports have been recently built, are best-in-class in terms of quality, and have ample room for growth.
“Not only the geographic proximity but also the cultural and business model proximity of both companies will ease future development plans, in particular in new airports investment opportunities.”
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The share purchase agreements remain subject to regulatory approvals.
TAV Airports operates 12 airports: Istanbul Atatürk, Ankara Esenboga, Izmir Adnan Menderes and Antalya Gazipasa Airports in Turkey, as well as Tbilisi and Batumi Airports in Georgia, Monastir and Enfidha-Hammamet Airports in Tunisia, Skopje and Ohrid Airports Macedonia. TAV Airports also operates the duty free and commercial areas at Riga International Airport in Latvia and will also be taking over the operations of Medinah Airport, the first privatization project in Saudi Arabia, in the first half of 2012.
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ATÜ Duty Free, jointly owned with Gebr Heinemann-controlled Unifree, is a vital TAV Airports division; the travel retailer officially opened its latest stores last week at Riga International Airport (pictured) |
