Spanish firm to be majority partner in Dalaman Airport

ISTANBUL

Madrid-based infrastructure, construction and aviation company Ferrovial has agreed to purchase 60 percent of the Dalaman Airport operating rights from Turkey’s YDA Group for 140 million euros ($160 million), according to statements by the company.

The completion of the deal is contingent upon the customary approvals for this type of transaction, including clearance from the Turkish authorities. It is expected to be completed in the first half of 2022, a statement from Ferrovial said.

The YDA Group, which has been operating the asset since 2006 and will retain a 40 percent stake, has undertaken major upgrades to the facilities, bringing the airport’s total capacity to 20 million passengers per year and space for over 40 aircraft.

In 2014, the YDA Group was awarded a 26-year concession, which was later extended to 2042.

Last year, the airport hosted 24,225 domestic flights and 7,480 international flights, according to data from the General Directorate Of State Airports Authority (DHMİ). The total number of flights (31,705) rose by 33 percent compared to the previous year.

Nearly 2.5 million passengers, including both arrivals and departures, were welcomed at Dalaman Airport in 2021, up 54 percent year-on-year.

Before the pandemic struck the tourism and travel industries in 2020, about 5 million people passed through the airport annually.

Located in the southwestern province of Muğla, Dalaman Airport is the major gateway to Turkish resort towns of Fethiye, Marmaris, Dalyan and Datça. Another airport in the same province serves tourists heading to Bodrum and Didim.

In 2021, slightly more than 1 million foreign tourists visited Muğla, data from the provincial tourism directorate shows. In 2019, that figure was over 3.2 million, including 1.1 million British, 513,000 Russian, 200,000 Ukrainian and 190,000 German tourists.

Under the concession agreement, the bulk of the airport revenue is in euros, as fees per passenger are set and collected in this currency.

“This is a unique opportunity to diversify our airport portfolio in an area that has become a fast-growing destination in Turkey for international tourism,” said Luke Bugeja, the CEO of Ferrovial Airports.

“The YDA Group has extensive experience in building and operating infrastructures under the P3 formula in Turkey, making it the ideal partner for this project. Ferrovial continues to advance without losing sight of opportunities in our strategic markets.”

Ferrovial currently manages airports in London (Heathrow), Glasgow, Aberdeen and Southampton.

“The synergies derived from our geographic complementarity will connect our customers to new destinations, while offering significant growth potential for both Dalaman and other markets. We are convinced that this partnership between two groups with a global presence in the aviation business will further contribute to our success,” YDA Group chair Hüseyin Arslan said.

İbrahim Romano, finance managing director of Ünlü & Co, which acted as the seller-side advisor, also hailed the agreement.

“We continue to move ahead at a brisk pace in 2022, with a steady stream of transactions, which reinforce our expectations of an upbeat mergers and acquisitions market in Turkey, in the short and medium term,” he said.

“We observe continuous interest from foreign investors in Turkey’s strategic sectors and leading companies,” he added.