London Heathrow Airport’s (LHR) largest shareholder is selling its entire 25% stake to two investors for £2.4 billion ($3 billion).
Spanish infrastructure specialist Ferrovial confirmed Nov. 29 that French private equity house Ardian had agreed to buy 15% of FGP Topco, Heathrow’s parent company. Ferrovial said Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) is also buying 10% of FGP Topco, divesting the Madrid-based firm of its holding in the airport.
Ferrovial, which has owned a stake in LHR since 2006, says the transactions are subject to regulatory clearance and rights that could be exercised by other shareholders, including Qatar Investment Authority, Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ), Singapore-based GIC, Australian Retirement Trust, China Investment Corporation, and Universities Superannuation Scheme.
“Over the last 17 years, we have been contributing to Heathrow’s transformation, together with our fellow shareholders, achieving some excellent milestones throughout our long-term role as investor,” Ferrovial Airports CEO Luke Bugeja said. “These include overseeing an investment of £12 billion, expanding its capacity with the construction of Terminal 2, and improving its operational performance.”
Paris-headquartered Ardian says its acquisition fits with its approach of “investing in significant infrastructure in its core markets.” The firm was previously a 49% shareholder of London Luton Airport from 2013 until 2018.
Saudi Arabia’s PIF adds that the investment in LHR is “in line with its strategy to support the business as a long-term partner.” It is one of the largest sovereign wealth funds in the world and is controlled by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
If approved, the transactions end Ferrovial’s involvement in Heathrow, which started in 2006 following a hostile bid for BAA, the British airports operator. The company bought an initial stake of 56% but by 2013 had reduced its shareholding to 25%.
The decision to dispose of its remaining stake comes a month after the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) largely upheld the decision by aviation regulator the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) on pricing levels.
In March, the CAA ordered LHR to cut its passenger charges by 20% from 2024. Under the CAA proposals, the average maximum per-passenger fee would drop from £31.57 in 2023 to £25.43 in 2024 and remain “broadly flat” until the end of 2026. The airport had wanted an increase to more than £40 per passenger, while airlines urged the price cap to be lowered to about £20 per passenger.
Although LHR is still losing money, losses narrowed to £19 million in the nine months to Sept. 30, compared with a loss of £442 million during the same period of 2022. Revenues jumped 30% to £2.7 billion, helped by a 34% year-on-year increase in passenger traffic to 59 million.
Speaking in late October, new Heathrow CEO Thomas Woldbye said LHR’s “best days still lie ahead.”
“We’ve got a clear plan to connect all of Britain to global growth, a flight path to net zero by 2050, and while we have a tight settlement from the CAA, we will upgrade the airport for our customers,” Woldbye added.
Related Content
