Privatized traffic at airports would exceed 90% with Congonhas auction

The auction of the seventh round of the airport concessions program, which takes place this Thursday (18), at the B3 headquarters in São Paulo, may expand the national traffic transferred to the private sector to more than 90%.

On the day, 15 airports will be offered, grouped into three blocks, which will be granted for a period of 30 years. According to Anac (National Civil Aviation Agency), from 2011 to 2021, the concession program transferred the equivalent of 75.8% of national traffic to private agents. If the lots are sold in this round, the expectation is that this percentage will reach 91.6%.

This Thursday’s auction will be the third round of concessions made in blocks. In this case, six Brazilian states will be covered: Amapá, Mato Grosso do Sul, Minas Gerais, Pará, Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo.

Together, the three blocks process about 16% of the country’s total passenger traffic – a level equivalent to more than 30 million passengers per year, according to data from Anac in 2019, before the pandemic. The government’s intention was to join coveted airports with loss-making terminals, to balance the blocks.

One of the main terminals in the country, Congonhas airport, in São Paulo, is considered the jewel in the crown, the biggest attraction for investors who plan to have a relevant role in the segment.

Congonhas is part of the “SP-MS-PA-MG” Block, which also includes Campo Grande (MS), Corumbá (MS), Ponta Porã (MS), Santarém (PA), Marabá (PA), Parauapebas (PA), Altamira (PA), Uberlândia (MG), Uberaba (MG) and Montes Claros (MG).

The São Paulo airport attracted the interest of the Spanish group Aena, which already operates in six airports in the Northeast region (including Recife, João Pessoa and Maceió), with an investment in these terminals estimated at R$ 1.4 billion.

THE Sheet informed that the deadline for sending the envelopes with the initial bids ended on Monday (15) and, according to sources who followed the process, CCR withdrew from participating, frustrating the government’s expectations.

The total investment in this block is R$ 5.8 billion, of which R$ 3.3 billion only in Congonhas. Projections indicate that the movement of passengers in these terminals should reach 37.5 million in 2052.

The first phase of investments, with a period of 60 months, foresees to adapt the taxiways. Airports also need to be adequate to supply passenger service and baggage processing capacity, including passenger terminal, vehicle parking, associated land routes and other supporting infrastructure.

The government requires operators to have experience in processing at least 5 million passengers per year in the last five years or a commitment to contract technical assistance with an operator that meets these requirements.

XP should debut in the airport sector

The second block, “General Aviation”, contemplates operations that are not regular flights – mainly helicopters and private and small planes. In this set are the Campo de Marte (SP) and the Jacarepaguá airport (RJ).

In this case, the total planned investments are R$ 552 million and the estimate is that the movement of passengers will reach 700 thousand in 2052. The requirement is that the operator has experience in operations of at least 200 thousand passengers per year or 17,000 takeoffs and landings in the last five years.

The XP investment platform should debut in the airport sector, having presented the only proposal for the concession of the Jacarepaguá and Campo de Marte terminals, according to a source told the Reuters news agency.

XP’s participation will take place through its asset management arm XP Asset, and in partnership with French contractor Egis.

When consulted by Reuters, XP stated that it would not comment on its possible participation in the seventh round of the airport auction.

The third group, “North 2”, in turn, corresponds to the operation of airports in two capitals: Belém (PA) and Macapá (AP). Both are expected to handle 9 million passengers at the end of the contract, in 2052.

The investment of this group is R$ 875 million, and the operator must prove experience in transporting 1 million passengers per year in at least one of the last five years.

With Reuters.