Vancouver Airport prepares to bid on Gatwick

The Vancouver Airports Authority is teaming up with the infrastructure arm of Citigroup Inc. to bid on Gatwick Airport in London, according to a report released on Monday.

Bidding on the airport follows a British Competition Commission report issued this summer stating that the British Airports Authority BAA) should sell three of its airports.

Vancouver-Citicorp’s bid is one of several bids expected, and is expected to be $3.4 billion, according to an article in Sunday Times, although sources were not cited.

In September, the Vancouver Airports Authority won a contract worth US$2.5-billion to develop and operate Chicago’s Midway Airport with Citigroup and John Hancock Life Insurance Co.

In May, Citi Infrastructure Investors, a unit of Citigroup Inc. acquired a 50 percent stake in Vancouver Airport Services.

Vancouver Airport Services is a partnership with the Vancouver Airports Authority, operating 18 airports that are located in seven countries and having revenues last year of $433 million.

Other bidders have also expressed an interest in acquiring Gatwick, according to the Times, including Deutsche Bank infrastructure arm RREEF Alternative Investments, Fraport – the Frankfurt Airport operator, the German construction company Hochtief, Manchester Airports Group and Virgin Atlantic Airways.

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