ARGENTINA. Eduardo Eurnekian, the Argentinean businessman who holds a 63% stake in Aeropuertos Argentina 2000 (AA2000), has finalised the sale of Foodport, which runs AA2000’s food & beverage business, to Spanish group Ãreas. The price was not disclosed.
Foodport records a monthly turnover of ARS8 million (US2.7 million) across the 32 airports in the AA2000 network, local reports said.
Ãreas, which already operates the Pizza Box, Cafe Cafe and La Strada restaurant chains in Argentina, will expand its food outlets in the country from 30 to 46.
Ãreas, a subsidiary of French catering services group Elior, recently acquired a 15% stake in Sintres, the new 75% shareholder in Swiss travel retail group Dufry.
Eurnekian’s company, Corporacion American Sudamericana (CAS), has recently paid US$30 million for the 28% stake in AA2000 held by the US group Covanta Energy Corporation, according to a statement made to the Buenos Aires stock exchange. Covanta (ex-Ogden Corporation) has been exiting from many aviation businesses – including airport catering – to focus on the energy business.
This share transfer increased the CAS holding in AA2000 to 63%, with Milan airports company Societa Per Azioni Esercizi Aeroportuali (SEA) having 28%, Italian state investment company SIMEST (8%) and RIVA (1%) holding the remainder.
AA2000 recently signed a letter of first option to buy Italy’s domestic carrier Volare Airlines with assistance from Milan airport’s SEA Technital and a Spanish consulting company.
