- The enterprise value of the operation is approximately 880 million euro.
- Swissport, the world's leading passenger and cargo handling company, operates in 38 countries.
- The company obtained 1.124 billion euro in revenues and 81mn in EBITDA in 2009.
- The transaction is part of the Company's policy of rotating assets and investing in new projects.
Madrid, 2nd November 2010. Ferrovial, through subsidiary Ferrovial Services, has reached an agreement to sell Swissport International AG, the world's largest airport ground handling company, to private equity firm PAI Partners for 900 million Swiss francs (approximately 654 million euro).
The transaction is expected to be closed late in 2010 or early in 2011, pending approval by the competition authorities and final arrangement of the financing structure by the buyer.
The enterprise value of the operation is 1.210 billion Swiss francs (approximately 880 million euro).
"Swissport's good results and track record have attracted investors interest, offering an opportunity to execute this transaction as part of our asset rotation strategy," said Íñigo Meirás, CEO of Ferrovial. "The proceeds from the Swissport sale will be invested in new infrastructure and services projects that we consider to have high potential of value creation."
Ferrovial acquired Swissport International in October 2005; It has become the world's largest passenger and cargo handling company with a presence in 38 countries. It obtained 1.124 billion euro in revenues and 81 million euro in EBITDA in 2009.
"I would like to thank Swissport's management and employees throughout the world for their efforts and constant dedication and their contribution to the company, which has enabled operating profits to increase by 150% since the acquisition," noted Santiago Olivares, CEO of Ferrovial.
Ricardo de Serdio, Senior Partner at PAI, added, we are very pleased with the positive conclusion to our negotiations with Ferrovial. Ferrovial has done an excellent job as shareholder including putting together a superb management team that has grown profits through very difficult market conditions. We are confident that PAIs experience in the Business Services sector will be a valuable contribution to management to continue to grow the business further.
After acquiring Swissport, Ferrovial implemented a successful strategy to rationalize operations, improve efficiency and expand into other countries, resulting in a 26% compound annual increase in operating profit. Swissport International provides ground handling services to over 70 million passengers and manages 2.8 million tonnes of cargo; it has close to 650 clients worldwide.
The company has 33,000 employees serving 176 airports on the five continents.
