Sacyr could bid for second Corvera airport management contract

The company expresses willingness to negotiate with the Murcia government

It has already been confirmed by the regional government in Murcia that seven companies have expressed an interest in bidding for the second management contract at the Region of Murcia International Airport in Corvera when it is put out to tender, and this week the possibility has emerged that an intriguing eighth bidder may join them.

The reason for the contract being put back out to tender is that the government unilaterally rescinded the previous contract with Aeromur on the grounds that the company had failed to open the facility within the timescale stipulated, and now it is being reported in the regional press that a bid for the new contract could be made by Sacyr, the construction company which is the majority shareholder in the Aeromur consortium.

It is reported in La Verdad that the company intends to study the terms of the new contract in detail when they are published, and that the possibility of making a bid will not be ruled out until this has been done. Despite having been involved in frequent litigation with the regional government in recent times, Sacyr now appears to be willing to sit down and negotiate, while at the same time maintaining the attitude that the re-appointment of Aeromur is the “best option” in terms of getting the airport at Corvera up and running as soon as possible.

Before a bid from Sacyr can be considered, though, it would be necessary to agree on the compensation which is to be received by Aeromur for the cancellation of the previous contract. 

Sacyr is the owner of 67.3% of the capital of Aeromur, and has been the consortium’s leader since it was formed specifically to manage the Corvera project. At present the company is still spending money on maintenance at the unopened airport, and in 2014 it financed the process of obtaining all of the necessary permits and certifications from the Spanish airport authorities in order to allow the facility to open.

These costs will be claimed back from the regional government as part of the compensation package, as will the cost of building and equipping the airport, which is estimated to be over 171 million euros. 

At present the terms of the contract which will be put out to tender by the government are still being drafted, and it is likely that the process will not start until an agreement has been reached with Aena to close the airport at San Javier to commercial traffic in order to make Corvera a more viable concern. This has been stipulated as a pre-requisite by other prospective bidders for the contract, although when Aeromur originally took on the project it was not one of their conditions.