Brazil could auction off airports to current holders, minister says
[SAO PAULO] Brazil may auction licenses to improve and operate as many as 11 airports to private investors as part of a broader plan to revamp privatization rules in the industry, Civil Aviation Minister Eliseu Padilha said on Thursday.
In the process, the government could scrap a rule forbidding investors who currently own a license from participating in new airport auctions, Padilha told Reuters. Officials are trying to gauge whether the number of individual license holders is big enough to guarantee competition, he said.
The veto "could be reviewed," Padilha said. "The question is how many players we need to ensure the industry will be competitive. We have yet to reach an answer to that." His remarks underscore President Dilma Rousseff's efforts to team up with private investors to improve the country's poor and ageing infrastructure. Growth in Brazil, Latin America's largest economy, has been sluggish for the past four years, chiefly because of growing supply bottlenecks in transportation, telecommunications and logistics.
Two years ago, Rousseff auctioned several airports, which analysts dubbed highly successful at the time. The sale of concessions to improve and operate more airports could help raise investment in Brazil at a time when a quickly expanding budget deficit has crimped the government's ability to build out infrastructure.
Padilha declined to give the name of potential airports that could go on the block, although he mentioned that the southern city of Porto Alegre could be a candidate.
For the Porto Alegre airport, the license could be pegged to the construction of another facility to meet future demand, Padilha said.
REUTERS
BT is now on Telegram!
For daily updates on weekdays and specially selected content for the weekend. Subscribe to t.me/BizTimes
Transport & Logistics
Ford profit beats on commercial sales; EVs still dragging
GM CEO Barra compensation fell 4% in 2023 to US$27.8 million
Boeing reports first revenue drop in 7 quarters as deliveries decline
Volkswagen to keep China market share stable as price war rages
COE quota for May-July up 2.7%; passenger car categories rise despite less cut-and-fill
Tesla profits tumble but shares rise on new vehicle plan