The A-Z of global airport operators

Joe Bates find out more about the ambitions, business philosophies and development plans of 28 operators with a global portfolio of airports.

Airports Company South Africa (ACSA) World Headquarters: Johannesburg, South Africa. Airports 100% owned and operated: Johannesburg-OR Tambo, Cape Town, Durban–King Shaka, Upington, East London, George, Kimberley, Port Elizabeth and Bram Fischer (Bloemfontein) airports in South Africa. Others: ACSA has a 10% stake in the GVK-led MIAL consortium, which operates Mumbai–Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport in India, and manages São Paulo’s Guarulhos International Airport courtesy of its 20% interest in the concessionaire responsible for operating the Brazilian gateway until 2032. Elsewhere in Africa, ACSA provides technical, advisory and consultancy services to airports in Ghana (Accra–Kotoka), Rwanda (Kigali–Bugesera) and Zambia (Lusaka–Kenneth Kuanda). Plans to expand/reduce portfolio: It continues to seek business opportunities in both the domestic and international markets. News: Investing at home appears to be ACSA’s main priority for 2020 with a number of development projects expected to advance this year. They include the addition of a new runway and expanding the domestic arrivals and international facilities at Cape Town International Airport; Increasing the size of the arrivals area in Terminal A and raising the aircraft parking capacity at Johannesburg’s OR Tambo International Airport; and adding aircraft parking facilities and expanding the Bravo taxiway at Durban’s King Shaka International Airport.

Aena/Aena Internacional World Headquarters: Madrid, Spain. Airports 100% owned and operated: Aena operates 46 airports and two heliports in Spain including Adolfo Suárez Madrid-Barajas and Barcelona El Prat airports. Others: Aena Internacional has interests in 23 airports in Brazil, Colombia, Jamaica, Mexico and the UK. It has a controlling 51% shareholding in London Luton Airport in the UK; 37.89% and 50% stakes respectively in Colombia’s Cartagena de Indias (SACSA) and Cali Alfonso Bonilla Aragón (Aerocali) airports; and a 33.3% interest in Aeropuertos Mexicanos del Pacífico (AMP), which

operates 12 Mexican gateways that include Tijuana, Guadalajara, Hermosillo, La Paz, San José de Cabo and Puerto Vallarta on behalf of Grupo Aeroportuario del Pacífico (GAP). In Jamaica, through AMP’s 17.4% stake in GAP, it has a controlling 74.5% interest in MBJ Airports Limited, which operates Sangster International Airport in Montego Bay, and holds a 25 year concession agreement for Kingston’s Norman Manley International Airport through GAP. Elsewhere, through Aena Desarrollo Internacional, Aena Internacional holds a 30 year concession to operate and develop the airports of Recife, Maceió, Aracajú, Campina Grande, João Pessoa and Juazeiro do Norte airports in north east Brazil. Plans to expand/reduce portfolio: Aena continues to consider new business opportunities worldwide. News: Aena has been busy in the market, adding six Brazilian airports and Jamaica’s capital city gateway to its global portfolio within the last year. In March 2019, through subsidiary Aena Desarrollo Internacional, it successfully bid €437.5 million for the contract to operate Recife, Maceió, Aracajú, Campina Grande, João Pessoa and Juazeiro do Norte airports in north east Brazil. The 30 year concession, with the possible option of a five year extension, is due to commence in early 2020. Recife is Brazil’s eighth biggest airport by passenger numbers and fifth biggest for international passenger traffic. It added Kingston’s Norman Manley International Airport in October 2019 when GAP officially took over responsibility for operating the gateway.

Atlantia World Headquarters: Rome, Italy. Airports 100% owned and operated: None. Others: Rome’s Fiumicino (FCO) and Ciampino (CIA) airports courtesy of its 99.38% ownership of Aeroporti di Roma (ADR). In France, it holds 60.4% of the shares in Azzurra Aeroporti, which has

AviAlliance keen to grow airport portfolio With traffic on the rise across its airport network, including San Juan in Puerto Rico which continues to recover from the infrastructure destroying impact of a 2017 hurricane, it is safe to say that 2019 did nothing to dull AviAlliance’s appetite for growth and expansion in the global arena.

Passenger numbers across its five airports has soared by more than 25% over the past five years and, in 2019, they handled 94 million passengers (+5.8%) between them.

“Rising demand is why we are investing in every aspect of the airports in our portfolio to improve passenger comfort and services,” says AviAlliance managing director, Gerhard Schroeder.

“In the past five years our airports have invested a total of €1.4 billion on expansion and development projects. Recent examples of this are Pier B at Budapest Airport, which we opened in 2018, and the revamping of the satellite terminal building at Athens International Airport. We have also started planning for new terminals at both airports.”

In addition to the ongoing development of its existing assets, the company is keen to grow its airport portfolio, and fellow managing director, Holger Linkweiler, admits that AviAlliance always has one eye on the market.

“We continuously seek new opportunities to expand our portfolio,” he says. “Our aim is to develop in the regions and a 64% stake in Aéroports de la Côte d’Azur (ACA), the operator of Nice Côte d’Azur, Cannes-Mandelieu and Saint Tropez airports. Elsewhere in Italy, Atlantia has a 29.38% shareholding in Bologne Airport operator, Aeroporto Guglielmo Marconi SpA, while separately ADR has a 15% stake in Genoa Airport. Plans to expand/reduce portfolio: Not known at this stage. News: If press reports are to be believed Atlantia, which is 30% owned by the Benetton family, is considering the sale of a 49% stake in ADR. Atlantia entered the international airport arena in November 2016 with its acquisition of ACA, the operator of Nice Côte d’Azur, CannesMandelieu and Saint Tropez airports in France. Both its Rome and Côte d’Azur concessions have a 2044 expiry date.

AviAlliance World Headquarters: Düsseldorf, Germany. Airports 100% owned and operated: None. Others: AviAlliance holds a controlling 55.44% stake in the consortium responsible for operating Hungary’s Budapest Airport. The company also has shares in the European airports of Athens (40%), Düsseldorf (30%) and Hamburg (49%).

In Puerto Rico, AviAlliance has a 40% stake in Aerostar Airport Holdings, operator of San Juan’s Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport. Plans to expand/reduce portfolio: Continues to monitor the market for good investment opportunities. News: AviAlliance has expressed an interest in boosting its stake in Athens International Airport by acquiring an additional 30% of its shares currently held by the Greek government. In Latin America, its Northeast Region Consortium – formed with Brazilian company Pátria Investments – narrowly lost out to Aena Desarrollo Internacional in the recent tender for the concession to operate Recife, Maceió, Aracajú, Campina Grande, João Pessoa and Juazeiro do Norte airports in north east Brazil.

countries we view as offering the most promising growth opportunities, such as Asia and South America.

“As one of the few airport operators and investors worldwide that offers expertise along the entire value chain, AviAlliance is looking for airports where we can add value.”

He notes that in order to attract AviAlliance, any new additions to its airport portfolio must be located in countries with good regulatory frameworks and political stability.

“We focus on airports where we can make an active contribution to creating or increasing the value of our investments by bringing in our broad expertise,” states Linkweiler.

He adds that today’s airport investment market is much tougher than it was 20 years ago. “The market for airport investments is currently tougher and more competitive than before. Long-term investments in airports have become increasingly attractive to investors and competition is therefore much stronger than in the past. And this increased competition, which has been observed for a few years now, has led to significantly higher prices,” says Linkweiler.

“Having said that, new regions and markets continue to open up for airport investment. It is therefore likely that the sector will remain interesting and attractive for a long time.”

Bouygues Construction Airport Concessions Head office: Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, France. Airports 100% owned and operated: None. Others: The Bouygues Group has a 22% stake in Hermes Airports, operator of Larnaca and Paphos airports in Cyprus; a 20.77% shareholding in ZAIC-A Ltd, which holds the concession for ZagrebFranjo Tuñman Airport in Croatia until 2043; and, together with sister company, Colas, has a 20% interest in Ravinala Airports, operator of Ivato (Antananarivo) and Facesne (Nosy Bé) airports in Madagascar, and a 15% interest in Iqaluit Airport in Canada. Plans to expand/reduce portfolio: It continues to concentrate on its niche market of greenfield airport concession projects based on the strategy of developing new capacity and commercial enhancing infrastructure that equips its assets for growth, while having at the same time a positive impact on local economies and minimising their carbon footprint. News: Agreeing to upgrade the facilities at Ivato and Fascene airports in Madagascar was key to Ravinala Airports winning the 28-year concession. A new 17,500sqm international terminal with the country’s first airbridges is expected to open at Ivato Airport in early 2020. The new terminal will be Excellence in Design for Green Efficiency (EDGE) certified by IFC, a member of the World Bank Group.

CCR Aeroportos Head office: Saõ Paulo, Brazil. Airports 100% owned and operated: None Others: CCR Aeroportos, the wholly-owned airports division of the CCR Group, has a 75% stake in the private consortium which has a controlling 51% interest in the concessionaire awarded the rights to operate Brazil’s Belo Horizonte International Airport for 30 years. Elsewhere in Latin America it has a 50% stake in Corporacíon Quiport, operator of Quito’s Mariscal Sucre International Airport in Ecuador; and a 97.15% interest in Costa Rica’s San José–Juan Santamaria International Airport courtesy of operator, AERIS Holding Costa Rica.

In the Caribbean it owns 79.8% of the shares in Curaçao Airport Partners NV (CAP), which operates Curaçao International Airport.

CCR also has a 70% stake in Total Airport Services (TAS), an aviation service company that provides cargo, passenger, ramp, ground handling and warehousing services at nine US airports that include

Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta (ATL), Chicago O’Hare (ORD), Los Angeles (LAX), San Francisco (SFO) and Houston (IAH). Plans to expand/reduce portfolio: CCR Aeroportos maintains that it is potentially interested in any project that meets the company’s investment criteria and commitment to infrastructure development, primarily in the US and Latin America. News: CCR has not been active in the market since purchasing Airports Worldwide Holding BV’s shares in AERIS Costa Rica in May 2018 to take a controlling 97.15% interest in the company responsible for operating Costa Rica’s capital city gateway.

Changi Airports International (CAI) World Headquarters: Singapore. Airports 100% owned and operated: None. Others: CAI, the wholly-owned subsidiary of Singapore Changi operator, Changi Airport Group (CAG), has a global presence.

In Asia-Pacific, CAI has a stake in Fukuoka International Airport Co (FIAC), which operates Fukuoka Airport in Japan under a 30-year concession agreement; and a 15% interest in Luzon International Premiere Airport Development (LIPAD) Corporation, the operator of Clark International Airport in the Philippines.

In Brazil, CAI has a 51% share in the consortium responsible for operating Rio de Janeiro’s Tom Jobim International Airport (Galeão). In Russia, CAI has a 30% stake in Basel Aero, the management company trusted to develop the airports of Krasnodar, Sochi and Anapa in Krasnodar Krai, and a one-third stake in Vladivostok International Airport.

In India, CAI has a 30.2% holding in Bengal Aerotropolis Project Ltd, which owns a greenfield airport and is developing a township in Durgapur in West Bengal. Elsewhere, in China, CAI holds a 49% stake in a commercial joint venture with Chongqing Airport Group, which develops the non-aeronautical business of Chongqing Jiangbei International Airport. Plans to expand/reduce portfolio: As a global airport investor, manager and consultant, CAI says that it continuously evaluates opportunities and looks for projects where it can add value and where there is a strong fit with its global strategy. News: In December 2019, CAI and its partner, PT Cardig Aero Services Tbk (CAS), won the 25-year concession for Labuan Bajo’s Komodo International Airport, a public-private project awarded by the Government of Indonesia. Last year also saw the addition of Fukuoka Airport in Kyushu prefecture in western Japan to CAI’s airport network.

CAI counts Mitsubishi, Kyushu Electric Power and Nishi-Nippon Railroad as its partners in the concession. In the Philippines, work is underway on a new 110,000sqm passenger terminal at Clark International Airport. CAI and its partners won the 25-year concession to operate and develop the gateway in December 2018.

Corporación América Airports (CAAP) World Headquarters: Luxembourg. Airports 100% owned and operated: None. Others: Corporación América Airports (CAAP) has an 81.3% stake in Aeropuertos Argentina (AA2000), which operates 35 airports across the country, including Ministro Pistarini International (Ezeiza) and Aeroparque-Jorge Newbery in Buenos Aires.

Elsewhere in Argentina, CAAP operates and has 81.1% and 74.1% stakes respectively in the Patagonian airports of Bahía Blanca and Neuquén, which are not part of AA2000 group of airports.

In Uruguay, CAAP manages Montevideo–Carrasco and Laguna del Sauce-Punta del Este airports courtesy of its 100% ownership of operator, Puerta del Sur.

In Brazil, through sister company Inframérica, it has a controlling 51% stake in Brasilia’s Presidente Juscelino Kubitschek International Airport (where state owned Infraero is the only other shareholder) and through ICASGA a 100% interest in Natal’s São Gonçalo do Amarante–Governador Aluízio Alves International Airport in Rio Grande do Norte state, where it has a 25-year concession.

In Ecuador CAAP operates Guayaquil’s José Joaquín de Olmedo International Airport because of its 50% stake in the TAGSA consortium and through 100% owned subsidiary, ECOGAL, runs Seymour/Baltra Airport in the Galapagos Islands.

Corporacíon América Airports also has an interest in six gateways in southern Peru (Arequipa, Juliaca, Puerto Maldonado, Tacna and Ayacucho) due to its joint ownership (50/50) of Aeropuertos Andinos del Peru with Andino Investment Holding.

Further afield, In Italy, through subsidiary Corporacíon América Italia, it has a controlling 51.1% stake in Toscana Aeroporti SpA, the operator of Pisa–Galileo Galilei and Florence–Amerigo Vespucci airports in Tuscany.

Through subsidiary, Armenia International Airports CJSC, CAAP also manages Zvartnots Airport in Yerevan and Shirak Airport in Gyumri. Plans to expand/reduce portfolio: CAAP is always on the lookout for further investment opportunities in the airport industry. News: Corporación América Airports – formerly known as Corporacíon América SA (CASA) – successfully completed an Initial Public Offering (IPO) in 2018 and is now a listed company on the New York Stock Exchange.

A 14 year extension to the concession for Punta del Este Airport in Uruguay, which was due to run out at the end of 2019, means that CAAP continues to have an interest in 52 airports across Latin America, Europe and the Caucasus. In exchange for the extending the deal to 2033, the concessionaire has pledged to invest an extra $35 million on upgrading the airport’s infrastructure.

In 2018, CAAP extended its Guayaquil Airport concession by five years to 2029 and agreed to invest a further $32.2 million on capital improvements at the Ecuadorian gateway.

CAAP and the Investment Corporation of Dubai (ICD) – which in 2018 acquired a 25% stake in Corporación América Italia – have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to jointly pursue new opportunities in the airport sector in Italy, Eastern Europe (excluding Russia) and the Middle East. The MoU aims to build upon CAAP’s management capabilities and deep knowledge of the airport industry as well as ICD’s unique access to financing and the capital markets. Quote: CAAP CEO, Martin Eurnekian, states: “We remain focused on executing our long-term strategy and our investment plans to better position the company for future growth, as macro conditions in our key markets improve.”

DAA World Headquarters: Dublin, Ireland. Airports 100% owned and operated: Dublin and Cork in the Republic of Ireland. Others: Retail subsidiary, Aer Rianta International (ARI), has a 20% stake in Germany’s Düsseldorf International Airport and an 11% interest in Hermes Airports Ltd, operator of Larnaca and Paphos airports in Cyprus.

In Saudi Arabia, overseas investment arm, daa international, has a five-year concession to manage the new Terminal 5 at Riyadh’s King Khaled International Airport. Plans to expand/reduce portfolio: No equity investments are planned. News: Wholly-owned ARI remains one of the world’s biggest duty free operators with annual revenues in excess of $1 billion through international operations in 11 countries across Europe, the Middle East, Asia-Pacific, North America and the Caribbean.

Edeis World Headquarters: Ivry-sur-Seine, France. Airports owned and operated: None. Others: Edeis operates Mayotte’s Dzaoudzi-Pamandzi Airport (Comoros islands in the Indian Ocean); Saint-Martin’s Grand Case Airport (Leeward Islands, Caribbean); and Castellón–Costa Azahar Airport in Spain, one of the country’s new, privately owned gateways, where it has a 20-year concession.

Its extensive network of 19 airports in mainland France include Angers-Loire Airport in Marcé in the west of the country and the business/general aviation airports of Vannes-Golfe du Morbihan (Brittany); Auxerre-Branches, Chalon Champforgeuil, Chalon-sur-Saône and Dijon-Bourgogne in Burgundy; Rouen, Le Havre-Octeville and Cherbourg-Maupertus in Normandy; Troyes-Barberey and Reims in Champagne; Angoulême-Cognac (South-West of France); Annecy Meythet in the French Alps; Bourges (Central France); and Toulouse Francazal and Aix les Milles (Aix-en-Provence). It also manages the regional airports of Tours Loire Valley (Chateaux de la Loire), TarbesLourdes-Pyrenees (Hautes-Pyrénées) and Nîmes-Alès-CamargueCévennes (Occitanie), where scheduled and charter services are operated all year around. Plans to expand/reduce portfolio: Edeis maintains that it is always seeking new business opportunities. News: Officially added to its portfolio on January 1, 2020, Dôle Jura Airport in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region of eastern France is the most recent addition to Edeis’ airport network, which will handle more

than 1.6 million passengers in 2020. A relative newcomer to the game, Edeis inherited a sizeable aviation portfolio when it took over all of SNC-Lavalin’s airport assets in France in late 2016.

Egis Airport Operation World Headquarters: Guyancourt, France. Airports 100% owned and operated: None. Others: In South America, Egis Airport Operation – part of the Egis Group – has a 5.1% stake in the consortium responsible for operating São Paulo’s Viracopos International Airport.

In Europe, Egis holds 25 year operating concessions for Antwerp and Ostend-Bruges airports in Belgium, and through subsidiary, Egis Projects, has a 20% stake in Hermes Airports, which operates Larnaca and Paphos airports in Cyprus.

In French Polynesia, Egis has a 30-year concession to operate Tahiti Faa’a Airport and has a five renewable year contract to manage Bora Bora, Raiatea and Rangiroa airports.

In Africa, Egis has a 29.5% stake in the consortium awarded a 25-year concession to operate, develop and expand Brazzaville, Pointe Noire and Ollombo airports in the Democratic Republic of Congo; and a 41% shareholding in the company responsible for operating Abidjan Félix Houphouët-Boigny International Airport in the Ivory Coast.

At home in France, Egis has a 24.5% shareholding in Air’Py, which holds the concession to operate and develop Pau-Pyrénées, Brest Bretagne and Quimper–Bretagne (formerly Bretage-Cornouaille) airports; and a 45% equity stake in the consortium responsible for managing Bergerac Dordogne Périgord Airport for the next 12 years. Plans to expand/reduce portfolio: Egis, which is 75% owned by France’s Caisse des Dépôts Group, continues to look for expansion opportunities for tenders that meet its criteria and offer the potential to grow. News: In November 2019, members of the Syndicat Mixte Air Dordogne (SMAD) approved a deal to award the operation and management of Bergerac Dordogne Périgord Airport to a consortium comprising Egis

(45%) and the Dordogne Chamber of Commerce and Industry (55%). The airport, billed as the gateway to the Dordogne, had been operated by the latter’s 100%-owned subsidiary, Société d’Exploitation de l’Aéroport de Bergerac Dordogne Périgord (SABDP) since April 2013. It handled close to 300,000 passengers in 2019. Its addition means that in 2020, Egis will boast an airport portfolio of 17 airports in seven countries on four continents.

Ferrovial Airports World Headquarters: Madrid, Spain. Airports 100% owned and operated: None. Others: Ferrovial Airports has a 25% stake in London Heathrow Airport and a 50% interest in AGS Airports, which owns and operates the UK gateways of Aberdeen, Glasgow and Southampton.

In 2017, the company re-entered the US market when its Great Hall Partners consortium was awarded a 34-year contract to redevelop and operate the Great Hall in Denver International Airport’s Jeppesen Terminal. Ferrovial Airports has a majority 80% stake in the consortium. Plans to expand/reduce portfolio: The City of Denver’s August 2019 decision to bring a premature end to its P3 concession for the Great Hall at Denver International Airport means that the contract will unilaterally terminate in April 2020. The move is a blow to Ferrovial Airports, which notes that it is actively looking to identify new opportunities in the global market, placing a particular focus on the US. News: Bloomberg reports that Ferrovial Airports is one of three companies to have submitted a non-binding bid for the concession to run Dalaman Airport in Turkey. The airport, located on the country’s Mediterranean coast, is currently operated by the YDA Group. Quote: Ferrovial Airports CEO, Jorge Gil Villen, says: “The US is a strategic growth market for Ferrovial Airports as we expect public private partnerships (P3s) to arise in the coming years. We have opened our US office in Austin that will allow us to be closer to key airport industry stakeholders.”

Fraport AG/Frankfurt Airport Services Worldwide World Headquarters: Frankfurt, Germany. Airports 100% owned and operated: Frankfurt Airport in Germany and Ljubljana–Jože Pučnik Airport in Slovenia. Others: Through its 73.4% majority stake in Fraport Greece, Fraport AG operates 14 regional airports in Greece that include Thessaloniki, Aktion and Kavala on the mainland and the island airports of Kerkyra/ Corfu, Chania/Crete, Kefalonia, Kos, Mykonos, Rhodes and Santorini. Elsewhere in Europe, Fraport has a 25% stake in Northern Capital Gateway, the operator of St Petersburg–Pulkovo Airport in Russia; a majority 60% shareholding in the Fraport Twin Star Airport Management AD consortium responsible for running Bulgaria’s Black Sea gateways of Burgas and Varna; and owns 51% of Fraport TAV Antalya, the terminal operator at Antalya Airport in Turkey.

In Latin America, Fraport has a controlling 80.1% interest in Lima Airport Partners (LAP), which operates and develops Jorge Chavez International Airport in Lima, Peru, and holds long-term concessions to manage and develop Fortaleza (25 years) and Porto Alegre airports (30 years) in Brazil.

While in Asia, Fraport AG has a 24.5% share in Xi’an Xianyang International Airport in China and a 10% shareholding in the DIAL consortium that runs Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport in India. Other international assets include 100% ownership of Fraport USA, which manages the former Airmall concessions at Cleveland, Pittsburgh and Baltimore/Washington airports; and manages the concessions space at Nashville; New York-JFK (Terminal 5); and Newark-Liberty (Terminal B). Fraport is also a minority partner (18.75%) in Tradeport Hong Kong Ltd, operator of a high-tech logistics centre at Hong Kong International Airport. Plans to expand/reduce portfolio: Fraport continues to look for opportunities to grow its global airport network while driving organic growth of its existing portfolio through major infrastructure developments in progress at its airports in Greece, Slovenia, Brazil and Peru. News: Fraport expanded its interest in Lima Airport Partners (LAP) in the second quarter of 2019 by acquiring an additional 10% stake in the operator of Peru’s Jorge Chavez International Airport. The acquisition, from AC Capitales’ Infrastructure Fund, raised Fraport’s majority ownership in LAP to 80.01%.

Wholly-owned subsidiary, Fraport USA, assumed responsibility for managing the retail space in Newark Liberty International Airport’s Terminal B on February 1 after being awarded a five year contract by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey in late 2019.

GMR Airports Limited (GAL) World Headquarters: Delhi, India. Airports 100% owned and operated: None. Others: In partnership with local company Megawide Construction Corporation, GMR has a 25-year operating concession for Mactan-Cebu International Airport in The Philippines.

On home turf in India, GMR Airports Limited (GAL) operates the gateways of Hyderabad–Rajiv Gandhi and Delhi-Indira Gandhi, courtesy of 63% and 64% shareholdings respectively in operators GMR Hyderabad International Airport (GHIAL) and Delhi International Airport Ltd (DIAL). Plans to expand/reduce portfolio: GMR Airports Ltd says that it will continue its strategy of becoming a “compelling and comprehensive airport company with strengths in developing, operating and managing airports in India and across the globe”. News: GMR Infrastructure Limited has agreed to sell a 49% stake in GMR Airports Limited (GAL) to Groupe ADP for €1.36 billion. GAL states that the deal will “combine unmatched strengths in airport development and operations, offering the highest levels of passenger experience”. It adds that it will also open up new opportunities for route development, enhanced expertise in operations, retail, IT, innovation, engineering and other areas.

Between them, GAL and Groupe ADP’s airports handled 336.5 million passengers in 2019.

GMR Group chairman, GM Rao, noted: “The partnership with Groupe ADP is in line with GMR’s business direction to become a global airport developer and operator.”

Once the deal is done, GAL will be jointly owned by GMR Infrastructure (51%) and Groupe ADP (49%).

Elsewhere, construction work has started on Crete’s new €850 million Kastelli Airport, which is being financed and built by the Ariadne Airport Group – a joint venture between GAL and Greek firm GEK-Terna – in exchange for a 35 year operating contract. Slated to open in 2024/25, it will replace Heraklion’s Nikos Kazantzakis International Airport. And wholly-owned subsidiary, GMR Goa International Airport Limited (GGIAL), has signed a 40-year concession agreement to build and operate Goa’s new Mopa International Airport, the first phase of which is expected to open in 2022.

Groupe ADP World Headquarters: Roissy, France. Airports 100% owned and operated: Groupe ADP owns and operates Paris CDG, Paris-Orly and Le Bourget airports. Others: Groupe ADP directly manages a portfolio of 24 airports worldwide. Through its 46.12% stake in TAV Airports, Groupe ADP has interests in Ankara Esenboga, Izmir, Milas Bodrum and Gazipasa in Turkey; Medina (Saudi Arabia); Monastir and Enfidah (Tunisia); Tbilisi and Batumi (Georgia) and Skopje and Ohrid (Macedonia). In South America, Groupe ADP has a 45% stake in the Nuevo Pudahuel consortium, which has a 20-year concession to operate and develop Santiago’s Comodoro Arturo Merino Benítez International Airport in Chile. VINCI Airports (40%) and Astaldi (15%) are the other major partners in the consortium.

In the Middle East, ADP International has a controlling 51% shareholding in AIG, operator of Jordan’s Queen Alia International Airport, and a 5% interest in MATAR, which operates and mantains the Hajj Terminal at King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. In Africa, ADP Management owns 29% of Conakry International Airport operator, SOGEAC, in Guinea; and a 35% stake in Ravinala Airports, which holds the concession for Antananarivo and Nosy Be airports in Madagascar. It also has a 10% stake in ATOL, the operator of Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam International Airport in Mauritius.

Groupe ADP has an 8% stake in the Schiphol Group and in Europe has interests in Liege Airport (25.6%) in Belgium and Zagreb’s Franjo Tuñman Airport (20.8%) in Croatia. In the United States, its Future Stewart Partners joint venture with AvPorts is responsible for operating

Groupe ADP reveals global ambitions Groupe ADP has gone on record as stating that its ambition is to operate a global network of airports that handles around 450 million passengers annually and contributes 35% to 40% of its earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) by 2025.

In 2018, its airports welcomed 281.4 million passengers and accounted for 27.5% of Groupe ADP’s EBIT.

Fernando Echegaray, Groupe ADP’s executive officer for operations, says: “At each airport we manage under concession or management contract our goal is to create value for all the stakeholders by developing traffic and new routes, by increasing aeronautical and non-aeronautical revenues [retail, real estate, etc] by promoting innovative solutions for airlines and passengers to ensure their sustainable environmental development. and maintaining New York Stewart International Airport’s terminal, landside and airfield. Plans to expand/reduce portfolio: Groupe ADP is actively looking to expand its global airport portfolio both in terms of equity and non-equity investments. News: Groupe ADP has signed a €1.36 billion deal to acquire a 49% stake in India’s GMR Airports Limited (GAL). The deal will be completed in two phases, with a 24.9% interest in GAL expected to be completed in late February (as Airport World went to press), followed by a second transaction for another 24.01% stake at a later date, subject to certain regulatory conditions.

ADP’s chairman and CEO, Augustin de Romanet said: “The acquisition of a 49% stake in GMR Airports fits within Groupe ADP’s strategy. It sets a robust industrial partnership and enables Groupe ADP to build, only two years after taking control of TAV Airports, a unique worldwide network of airports with a solid industrial expertise and strong development capacities. “This acquisition will constitute a growth driver in the medium term, and also a transforming position for the group in one of Asia’s and the world’s most dynamic and promising countries.”

Grupo Aeroportuario de Pacifico (GAP) World Headquarters: Guadalajara, Mexico. Airports 100% owned and operated: None. Others: At home in Mexico, GAP has concessions to operate the 12 Pacific region airports of Aguascalientes, Guadalajara, Hermosillo, La Paz, Guanajuato, Los Cabos, Los Mochis, Manzanillo, Mexicali, Morelia, Puerto Vallarta and Tijuana.

In Jamaica, GAP has a controlling 74.5% interest in MBJ Airports Limited, which operates Sangster International Airport in Montego Bay, and has a 25 year concession agreement to operate and develop Kingston’s Norman Manley International Airport. Plans to expand/reduce portfolio: It continues to seek new investment opportunities with Latin America remaining a key focus area. News: GAP officially added Kingston’s Norman Manley International Airport to its international airport portfolio in October 20, 2019, when it assumed responsibility for operating the gateway a year after being awarded the 25 year concession by the Jamaican government.

“Our vision is based on the creation of people friendly airports and our strength lies in our ability to provide holistic solutions and draw on the network of airports already managed in Paris and abroad, by sharing the best practices.”

The company’s executive officer for development, Xavier Hürstel, notes: “Air traffic is expected to double over the next 20 years and the privatisation of airports continues at a pace. However, with only 14% of airports currently being managed by private entities, we expect to see a lot of opportunities for new greenfield and brownfield concessions in the future.

“Thanks to engineering subsidiaries like ADP Ingénierie or Merchant Aviation and the service companies of TAV Airports, Groupe ADP has solid credentials in the Americas, Asia, Africa and Middle-East and could easily enter new markets or new countries.”