AIRPORT PRIVATE-PUBLIC PARTNERSHIP. Aerostar Airport Holdings, LLCon Feb. 27 announced that it has won approval by the Federal Aviation Administration to lease and operate the San Juan Luis Munoz Marin Intl Airport (SJU) as a public-private partnership:
Aerostar is a joint venture of Highstar Capital and Grupo Aeroportario del Sureste, S.A.B. de C.V.. The approval paves the way for SJU to become the first major airport in the U.S. run by a private operator under the FAA's Pilot Privatization Program, signed into law in 1996. Aerostar will begin to move forward with its plan to invest nearly SI.4 billion over the 40-year life of the lease to transform SJU into a world-class airport gateway, said Christopher Lee, Highstar's Founder and Managing Partner;
The Puerto Rico government has estimated that it will receive morethan S2.6 billion in revenue and other benefits over the life of thelease. Gov. Alejandro Garcia-Padilla signed off on the deal, despiteopposition from segments of the island's population, namely labor unions, airport employees and lawmakers;
Agustin Arellano Rodriguez, President of Aerostar, said "We are grateful to the Governor of Puerto Rico and his team, along with the airlines, for their strong support and partnership as we begin to buildtogether a new chapter in U.S. aviation history." Aerostar made an upfront $615 million leasehold fee, with the goal of improving aviation services and the passenger experience while creating crucial jobs for Puerto Rico, followed by up to S240 million during the first threeyears of its lease to complete needed maintenance projects, improve passenger flow, upgrade roadways and technological infrastructure, reduce security wait times and improve and enhance airport retail offerings;
SJU is the Caribbean's busiest airport, handling more than 8.4 million passengers in fiscal 2012. According to the PRPA, SJU generates more than 8,000 direct and indirect jobs and recently opened the newly-constructed Terminal A, served by JetBlue Airways. Aerostar said itexpects at least 1,500 direct and indirect construction-related jobsto be created through its near-term capital investment program;
Aerostar is a Puerto-Rico based joint venture between Highstar, anAmerican infrastructure investment firm, and an affiliate of Grupo Aeroportario del Sureste, (ASUR), a Mexican airport operator with concessions to operate, maintain and develop the airports of Cancun, Merida, Cozumel, Villahermosa, Oaxaca, Veracruz. Huatulco, Tapachula and Minatitlan in the southeast of Mexico. Details: Anthony Applewhaite, Brunswick Group. (202) 393-7337/ [email protected]
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