WELLINGTON – Dubai Aerospace Enterprise (DAE) will acquire a controlling interest in Auckland International Airport (AIAL), subject to shareholder approval.
The directors of New Zealand’s biggest aviation hub said they unanimously recommended acceptance of DAE’s offer, worth about US$2.08 billion, which would give it up to 60 per cent of the company.
Shareholders will vote on the proposal in November. ?? John Maasland, chairman of AIAL, said that DAE was a global aerospace manufacturing and services corporation that was seeking to become a major player in the international aerospace industry. ??”We believe DAE will bring additional aviation and tourism development experience to the New Zealand business,” he said. “This partnership should deliver significant benefits to the company and New Zealand tourism as a whole.”??The deal is subject to acceptance by 75 per cent of shareholders and approval of the NZ Overseas Investment Office.
Local councils in Auckland, which own stakes in the airport, are believed to oppose the DAE bid on the grounds that they do not believe a strategic parcel of land should be owned by a foreign entity.
