Portugal's Airport ANA Attracts Fraport, Ten Other Bidders - Sources

By Eyk Henning and Patricia Kowsmann

FRANKFURT--The sale of state-owned Portuguese airport operator ANA-Aeroportos de Portugal S.A. is attracting around ten potential suitors including German airport operator Fraport AG (FRA.XE), which has already teamed up with Australian infrastructure funds IFM, several people familiar with the matter have told Dow Jones Newswires.

Other potential bidders include the French airport operator Aeroports de Paris, Turkish airport operator TAV Havalimanlari Holding A.S.(TAVHL.IS), Singapore's Changi airport, Spanish infrastructure group Ferrovial as well as infrastructure funds Global Infrastructure Partners LLC, Macquarie's infrastructure funds and North American pension funds, these people said. Information material was sent to around ten potential suitors and is awaiting first rounds bids in October, one of the people said, adding binding bids could be due early December.

A spokesman for the Portuguese Government declined to comment. A spokesman for Fraport confirmed the company has teamed up with IFM of Australia when contacted by Dow Jones.

If valued at eight times its 2011 earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, which was the average multiple of recent deals in the sector according to government and airline officials, ANA would be worth roughly EUR1.6 billion. The valuation of ANA will, however, hinge upon the future of state-owned airline TAP, which uses the Lisbon airport as a hub and is also up for sale, one of the sources said.

The Portuguese government could either close a deal by the end of the year or hand the airport operator's management to a private company, which would, at a later stage, buy the entire airport, one of the people said. The person added that the government and the EU are currently discussing this plan.

The targeted sale of the airport by year-end is part of a series of privatizations Portugal has submitted in order to secure a 78 billion euros ($100.7 billion) bailout package from the European Union and the International Monetary Fund.

While ANA is attracting a healthy number of parties, the sale of TAP, which is also to be sold by year-end, has been lackluster. Deutsche Lufthansa AG (LHA.XE) and International Consolidated Airlines Group S.A. (IAG.LN), which have shown initial interest in the airline, didn't put bids as they struggle to make their existent operations cost-effective and profitable. People familiar with the situation say only three companies have bid for TAP, including a holding company ran by German Efromovich, chairman of the Columbian airline Avianca.

Portugal agreed to an austerity program and a series of privatizations in turn for an aid package from the EU and the IMF. Finance minister Vitor Gaspar on Wednesday unveiled additional measures ranging from raising taxes across the board and further spending cuts to meet ambitious budget targets.

The country has already sold a 21% stake in utility company EDP-Energias de Portugal S.A. (EDP.LB) for EUR2.7 billion to China's Three Gorges Corp.

--Jessica Hodgson in London contributed to the report

Write to Eyk Henning at [e-mail] and Patricia Kowsmann at [e-mail]