Singapore, April 16, 2010 – Singapore Airport Terminal Services (SATS) and Air India today signed an agreement to form a single 50:50 joint venture (JV) company that would serve as the vehicle to house their three existing ground and cargo handling JVs in Bangalore and Hyderabad.
To be named Air India SATS Airport Services Private Limited (AISATS), the JV company is in the process of being incorporated in Delhi.
In September 2008, SATS was chosen by Air India as its JV partner for ground handling in India. Prior to that, both companies have already collaborated in Hyderabad and Bangalore under three separate JVs, providing ground and cargo handling services since the opening of the new airports in March and May 2008 respectively. However, the incorporation of these JVs was held back, pending Air India’s plans to select a strategic ground handling partner at the other metro airports in India, like Delhi and Mumbai where world class ground handling is required.
The incorporation of AISATS, which is expected to be completed next month, will provide a legal entity to house the existing operations in Bangalore and Hyderabad and potential operations in other metro airports. Air India and SATS will each nominate three representatives as Boardmembers of AISATS.
Clement Woon, president & chief executive officer of SATS, said:
“Our successful cooperation with Air India in Bangalore and Hyderabad has demonstrated the vast synergies that our partnership can potentially reap by combining Air India’s strong local footprint and knowledge with SATS’ experience and know-how in ground handling.
“Through this JV, we look forward to growing further our presence in India to serve our key customers at more locations. We also seek to deepen our participation in the privatization of India’s aviation sector and contribute to the growth of the industry,” added Mr Woon.
