The president of Aeropuertos Españoles y Navegación Aérea (Aena), Maurici Lucena, has stated the company's position regarding the Canary Islands' claim to be involved in the co-management of the island's airports. Lucena argues that Aena's private shareholders, who hold 49% of the shares, would oppose the entry of representatives from the autonomous Executive as de facto partners, which could lead to legal disputes.
“"They are already very uneasy."
This situation occurs in a context where Aena represents a business with an annual volume exceeding 20 billion euros. Private shareholders include entities such as BlackRock, Morgan Stanley, and TCI Luxembourg. The partial privatization of Aena took place in February 2015 under the government of Mariano Rajoy, selling 49% of the shares at 58 euros each, quickly reaching 100 euros by April of the same year. A year after its stock market debut, the company's value increased from 8.7 billion to nearly 14 billion euros.
It is worth noting that the Statute of Autonomy of the Canary Islands, enacted in 2018, includes the possibility for the autonomous community to participate with the State in airport management. This provision was promoted by Coalición Canaria. However, the current interpretation by Aena and the central Government appears to limit this participation to cooperation, excluding effective co-management, citing the potential legal reaction from private partners.
