A $1b stake in Gold Coast, Townsville airports hits the market
There’s no shortage of activity at the country’s major aviation assets, with Queensland Airport Limited’s shareholders joining those at Brisbane Airport in weighing up their options for the future of that investment.
State Super, Australian Retirement Trust and The Infrastructure Fund own some 40 per cent of QAL – the owner of airports at Gold Coast, Townsville, Mount Isa and Longreach – and have Barrenjoey on board for advice. Sources said the two superannuation funds wanted to exit in full, while TIF was keen for a partial sell down.
The sale would be a $1 billion-plus deal based on similar transaction multiples, and the fourth airport deal that has crossed Street Talk’s desk this year. Brisbane Airport has a 12.5 per cent stake up for grabs via Macquarie Capital as an Igneo client looks for an exit, while UBS has nabbed the mandate to sell Auckland Council’s 7 per cent holding in dual-listed Auckland International Airport. Then there’s the 1 per cent stake offered up by Dexus in Melbourne and Launceston airports.
Gold Coast airport expansion would be a drawcard for QAL investors’ selldown.
QAL’s portfolio is particularly attractive because it is focused on two tourism hotspots that have rebounded markedly after the COVID-19 pandemic. Then there are airports with exposure to the state’s mining sector. (It also owns the Northern Australian Aerospace Centre of Excellence in Townsville.)
Volumes at QAL are back to pre-pandemic levels, with more than 3.8 million passengers passing through their gates in the six months to June 30. Last month, in fact, was the busiest June on record, according to the latest figures circulated by QAL.
Townsville had more than 153,000 passengers through its terminals that month – higher than
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