New airport: Government gives green light to ANA, but calls for adjustments
An initial report by ANA Aeroportos, the Vinci-owned operator of Portugal’s airports, sets the opening date for the new hub to mid-2037, or, with optimisations, in late 2026.
What?
The Government asked Portuguese airports operator ANA, owned by France’s Vinci, to proceed with the formal application to build the new Luís de Camões airport in Alcochete, after reviewing its initial report.
The report is still a preliminary version. In the coming months it will be up for public consultation, a process that will dictate adjustments to the project, such as the mandatory Environmental Impact Statement, and should not be finished before 2029. Until then, many details will be negotiated with the Government.
The initial report delivered by ANA to the government on December 17 predicts that Luís de Camões airport will cost 8.5 billion euros, of which 7 billion will be financed through debt issuance.
The infrastructure ministry said in a statement that the initial report on the new airport submitted by ANA in December did not foresee a direct contribution from the state budget, in full alignment with government plans.
“The government informed ANA that it wants the concessionaire to prepare the application for the airport and that cost reduction is a priority,” it said, adding that ANA now has up to 36 months to formally present its plans.
The government said it was open to discussing adjustments to the airport specifications, and wants to “review and discuss” the airport’s financing model and risk-sharing with ANA.
Main details
Following the announcement, the Institute of Mobility and Transport (IMT) published ANA’s initial report on its website. These are the main details:
The operator targets a mid-2037 opening but admits the airport could be ready by late 2036.
In an initial phase, the airport will have two four-kilometre runways capable of handling all aircraft types, with provisions to add two more runways in the future.
The company’s project envisages that the new airport will initially be able to accommodate 45 million passengers annually - 10 million more than the capacity of the current Humberto Delgado Airport - rising to around 52 million passengers by 2060.
To pay for the aiport, the company suggests introducing a progressive annual increase of airport charges at Lisbon Airport from 2026 to 2030 that will take into account inflation plus 9.8% (in other words, the project won’t have a direct contribution from the state budget, but taxpayers will still pay for it…).
It proposes extending the duration of the concession of national airports for another 30 years - until 2092 - “to allow the amortization of the investment in the new Lisbon airport”.
ANA also pointed out that the new airport will depend on the previous construction of infrastructures to ensure accessibility - i.e., the third bridge over the Tagus and road and rail links to Lisbon - and these, it emphasises, will have to be developed “by the state”.
Government’s reply
In its response to ANA’s initial report, the government criticized the operator for providing information that goes beyond the scope of the document and is insufficient regarding the financial aspects of the proposal, hindering a proper analysis.
“The initial report omits certain elements, compromising the ability to properly analyze the assumptions and rationale behind the proposals presented (for example, regarding the financial assumptions used to draft the construction financing proposal, as well as the investment assumptions and traffic forecasts),” states the Ministry of Infrastructure and Housing.
The government also points out that “regarding the cost estimate, particularly (but not only) with respect to the details of infrastructure costs, the assumptions about its scheduling, and the investment needs throughout the concession period, the information provided by the concessionaire is manifestly insufficient to allow a detailed analysis and draw informed conclusions about the validity of the estimate.”
Furthermore, the Government highlights “the complete lack of detailed financial information that would allow an assessment of the reasonableness of the assumptions, as well as the resulting outcomes,” especially regarding cash flow projections, discount rates, weighted average cost of capital, and the capital asset pricing model (CAPM), among others.
In its response, the ministry emphasizes that “at no point does it commit to the total CAPEX value of the proposed project” or the associated timelines.
Another criticism raised is that the initial report “includes elements that largely exceed the scope defined” in the concession contract, specifically pointing to the inclusion of a legal framework not part of the report’s components.
Finally, the Government also stresses that its response to ANA does not imply “any acceptance of the terms of the Initial Report” by the grantor, i.e., the State.
The full report is available below (in portuguese):
