Palma.— Spain’s state-owned AENA has appointed banks Santander, BBVA, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley to run a process in which just under half the company will be privatised, the airport operator said yesterday.
Spain aims to sell up to 49 percent of heavily-indebted AENA, the world’s biggest airports operator, through a placement of up to 21 percent with institutional investors and selling the remainder through an initial public offering.
The government has said the aim of the sale is to make the company more efficient and attract more tourist flights. AENA owns 46 airports at home and also has international interests such as a stake in London’s Luton Airport.
The government is expected to net only about 2.2 billion euros ($2.97 billion) from the sale, given the company’s debt of some 11.5 billion euros, according to calculations by sector experts. This is not enough to make a major dent in Spain’s public deficit.
The great Spain airport sell off