French construction group Vinci has signed an agreement to acquire a 50.01% stake in Gatwick Airport
Vinci Airports, a concessions subsidiary of Vinci, signed an agreement to acquire from current shareholders an effective 50.01% stake in Gatwick Airport Limited, a freehold property airport.
The transaction is expected to complete in the first half of 2019. The remaining 49.99% will be managed by Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP).
In the year ended 31 March 2018, Gatwick Airport Group reported total revenue of £764.2m. After the closing, Vinci Airports will be able to fully consolidate the Gatwick Airport. The payable amount for the 50.01% stake is expected to be £2.9bn, subject to closing adjustments.
The acquisition of Gatwick Airport represents a major strategic move by Vinci Airports into a strongly performing airport located in a globally significant aviation market. Gatwick will become the largest single airport in Vinci’s worldwide network.
Nicolas Notebaert, Chief Executive Officer of Vinci Concessions and President of Vinci Airports said: “Creating synergies and sharing best practices being at the core of our values, the whole Vinci Airports network will benefit from Gatwick Airport’s world-class management and operational excellence, which has allowed it to deliver strong and steady growth in a very constrained environment.
“As Gatwick’s new industrial partner, Vinci Airports will support and encourage growth of traffic, operational efficiency and leverage its international expertise in the development of commercial activities to further improve passenger satisfaction and experience.”
