Edinburgh Sold to GIP

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  • Anonymous
    Guest

    LeTigre
    Participant

    http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-scotland-business-17814024

    “A deal has been struck to sell Edinburgh airport to the owner of Gatwick and London City airports for about £800m.

    Global Infrastructure Partnership (GIP) has beaten off competition from a consortium led by another infrastructure investor, J.P. Morgan Asset Management.

    The operator BAA was ordered to sell either Edinburgh or Glasgow airports.

    A full announcement is expected later.

    Edinburgh Airport was put on the market by its owner BAA last October, after the Competition Commission ruled that it had to sell either Edinburgh or Glasgow.

    The winning price, which is understood to be close to £800m, is considerably more than had been expected.

    Three years ago, Spanish-owned BAA sold Gatwick Airport to GIP, under the same regulatory requirement to break up assets that had previously been state-owned.

    It is thought that GIP intends to improve the speed at which passengers move through the airport at check-in, security and baggage handling, and to link the Scottish capital with new routes.

    Its investment pattern is to sell the asset on after about seven years.”


    openfly
    Participant

    Great news for all. If GIP can transform EDI the same way that they have transformed LGW, we will all be pleased. LGW is a delight to use now.


    LPPSKrisflyer
    Participant

    This is excellent news for Edinburgh. It has always had great potential but for whatever reason seems to have been held back from opportunities by BAA who seemed to favour GLA even though EDI is more centrally situated.

    A facelift and some new carriers like EY and QR and who knows who else and in a couple of years the place will be buzzing.


    canucklad
    Participant

    I wonder how “if I don’t get my own way I’m going to take my ball home Mr. Ryanair will take the news! And please can the new owners remember that they’ve bought an airport and not a Westfield shopping centre!


    ChrisBuda82
    Participant

    “And please can the new owners remember that they’ve bought an airport and not a Westfield shopping centre!” Canucklad best thing seen all day:P

    I would have liked it to gone to a other company as we seeing Two groups now BAA and GIP in the UK.

    GLA has more room to play with and EDI going to have prob room to play with. Edinburgh is a Small City compared to Glasgow the largest city in Scotland and Third biggest city in the UK.

    So BAA selling EDI you see why they did it, and also Edinburgh is not far from Glasgow a hours drive at best.


    goalie11
    Participant

    ChrisBuda82

    Conversely, Glasgow is not far from Edinburgh, only an hours drive at best.

    The difference being that for the East, Central, North and South East of Scotland (and even those in the East of Glasgow, giving us most of the population), Glasgow Airport is on the wrong side of Glasgow and getting there through the centre of the city is a nightmare with motorway congestion etc.

    However, Edinburgh being more centrally is much better placed strategically to service the majority of the population, not to mention North East England.

    You’ll also find that there is quite a bit of scope for expansion. Thank God for the stupidity of management that was always apparent at BAA.


    Henkel.Trocken
    Participant

    Excellent news for EDI, I’m really pleased. Hopefully the people of Edinbugh will now get an airport fit for their needs instead of what was left over from GLA.


    canucklad
    Participant

    I would add that the East of Scotland is pretty much were the economic wealth ibase is located both from a business perspective and general demographic perspective. GLA is to EDI what LGW is to LHR.. you just need to count the flights between the south east and EDI. Goes back to my Westfield point GLA ‘s duty free shop ‘s and bars will always have a captive audience as the volume of charter tourist passengers will be higher than EDI.


    Age_of_Reason
    Participant

    Goalie I challenge you to drive from centrl Edinburgh to GLA allowing an hour to make yr checkin. Can be done, but should allow 2 h and avoid peak rush. GLA is actually in Paisley, and EDi is as convenient for Glasgow-east & Lanarkshire.

    And the Scottish SNP Govt gave in to pressure from someone to kill the GARL (Galasgow Airport Rail Link) – so tain from Edinburgh is not ferasible either (train-walk-train-bus)

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