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PORTUGAL. Vinci Concessions has been confirmed as the preferred bidder for the privatisation of ANA-Aeroportos de Portugal under a 50-year deal, with an offer of €3.08 billion.
As we previously reported, the company made the highest financial offer for the business, beating consortia led by Corporación America, Fraport and Flughafen Zürich.
Vinci Concessions will operate the country’s ten airports: Lisbon, Porto, Faro and Beja on the mainland; Ponta Delgada, Horta, Flores and Sainta Maria in the Azores; and Funchal and Porto Santo in Madeira.
Vinci said in a statement: “ANA constitutes a group of high quality airports that in 2012 handled 30 million passengers, mostly international. Passenger numbers have increased at an annual average of over +4% over the past ten years. The Lisbon hub offers a major advantage due to its strategic position vis-Ã -vis high growth destinations (Brazil, Portuguese-speaking Africa – Angola, Mozambique). ANA’s activities include management of the airport facilities, commercial activities, ground handling services, safety and security and passenger assistance services.”
Through the acquisition of ANA, Vinci Airports, a Vinci Concessions subsidiary, is set to build its presence as an international player in airport concessions, with 23 airports managed in Portugal, France and Cambodia. These airports handle 40 million passengers a year, including a European hub with over 15 million passengers. Vinci Airports will have revenue of more than €600 million and EBITDA of around €270 million.
Vinci is already present in infrastructure concessions in Portugal, with a 37% holding in Lusoponte, which manages the 25 April and Vasco da Gama bridges over the Tagus estuary in Lisbon, as well as through its Portuguese operations in engineering and electrical works (Sotecnica and Cegelec).
The airports contract is scheduled to be signed during the month of January. The transaction will be submitted for the approval of anti-trust authorities.
Commercial activities have played a key role in driving revenues and profits at ANA in recent years. The company set itself the objective of hitting €66.8 million in retail revenues by 2015 and €75 million in 2016 (equivalent to around €366 million in concessionaire sales). Aided by big investment in retail space in the past two years, notably in Lisbon, it is on track, with H1 2012 sales up +13% and spend per passenger climbing +5%.
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Retail plays a key role in ANA’s revenue generation; the airport and concessionaires such as Nuance (above and below) have invested heavily in the infrastructure at Lisbon |
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