MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Sole bidders granted management of São Paulo's Congonhas airport

The bidders offered R$ 2.45 billion (US$ 47.5 million) which meant a premium of 231.02% over the reference

The Spanish company Aena has been granted the management of São Paulo's old airport of Congonhas for the next 30 years after being the only company to submit a bid, it was reported Thursday.

The investors have also been awarded the entire SP-MS-PA-MG block, which, besides Congonhas, includes the airports of Campo Grande, Corumbá and Ponta Porã, in Mato Grosso do Sul; Santarém, Marabá, Parauapebas and Altamira, in Pará; and Uberlândia, Uberaba and Montes Claros, in Minas Gerais.

The bidders offered R$ 2.45 billion (US$ 47.5 million) which meant a premium of 231.02% over the reference value established in the public notice.

According to Brazil's National Civil Aviation Agency (Anac), the airport concession program in Brazil had already transferred to private enterprise 77.5% of the national traffic between the years 2011 and 2021. With the seventh round, this percentage should now reach 91.6% of passengers served at airports nationwide.

Two other blocks were auctioned this afternoon at B3, the São Paulo stock exchange. The General Aviation Block, formed by the airports of Campo de Marte, in São Paulo, and Jacarepaguá, in Rio de Janeiro, was acquired by XP Infra IV FIP in Infrastructure, which offered R$ 141.4 million, a premium of 0.01%. There was no competition in this block either.

The North Block II, formed by the airports of the capitals of Pará, Belém, and Amapá, Macapá, was the only one vied for with bids from Vinci Airports and Consórcio Novo Norte Aeroportos. The latter won after offering R$ 125 (US$ 24.1 million), a premium of 119.78% of the starting values.

According to Anac, the 15 airports auctioned Thursday account for 15.8% of the total passenger traffic in Brazil, handling over 30 million travelers yearly.

Before Guarulhos Airport opened on Jan. 20, 1985, to replace Rio de Janeiro's Galeao as the leading gateway into the country, Congonhas used to be São Paulo's main airport

(Source: Agencia Brasil)