VINCI has offered €96.7 million for a 75.5% stake in Ljubljana Jože Pu?nik Airport, the international airport of the capital of Slovenia.

According to sources, three companies have pulled out of the tender process after the Slovenian government temporarily halted all privatisations in the country until a new government is formed. Vinci is the only bidder for the airport.

It is unkown whether other investors have submitted final bids for the asset.

According to VINCI, the company's main acquisition model is through Public Private Partnerships (PPP) and the goal is to establish a decentralised system in which Ljubljana Airport is at the centre and not a branch of VINCI-owned airports.

In late february this year VINCI signed the contract with the Portuguese government to acquire ANA, holder of the concession for a period of 50 years for 10 airports on Portugal's mainland (Lisbon, Porto, Faro, Beja), the Azores (Ponta Delgada, Horta, Flores and Santa Maria) and Madeira (Funchal and Porto Santo).

With the acquisition of ANA, VINCI Airports, becomes a global leader in airport concessions, managing 23 airports in Portugal, France and Cambodia, with more than 40 million passengers per year.

In June 2014, we reported that more than twenty companies have expressed interest to purchase a 75.5% stake in Ljubljana Jože Pu?nik airport.

China Southern Airlines, Fraport Group, Munich Airport, Zurich Airport, French engineering and consulting group Egis, VINCI and Italy's SAVE were among the firms who submitted interest for the asset.

In late March KPMG, the financial advisor in the sale process, had requested EOIs from interested parties.

The airport is located near the village of Brnik, 24 km northwest of Ljubljana and 9.5 km east of Kranj on the road between Kranj and Mengeš. It serves as the homebase for Adria Airways, the Slovenian flag carrier. The airport has a 3,300 m × 45 m paved runway.

The airport handled 1,321,100 passengers in 2013, representing a 10.2% rise in traffic figures compared to the previous year. It is currently the only airport in Slovenia with scheduled air traffic. The airport has seen an almost 13% increase in passenger numbers in the first quarter. In addition, it reported a net profit of €857.000 during the first three months, up 5.4% year-on-year, as revenue rose almost 6% to 7.13 million euros.

A second phase of the expansion plan, which had been planned to begin in 2013, but was postponed indefinitely by minority shareholders of Aerodrom Ljubljana, includes the construction of a completely new airport terminal. It will be built right next to the old one.

The new terminal building will expand over 32,000 m2. The capacity of T2 will be 2.5 million passengers annually. T2 will only be used for Schengen traffic, and non-Schengen traffic will flow through the new part of the old terminal. This will create some redundant space in T1, which will be converted for commercial purposes. The opening of T2 was originally planned for May 2015 but the new date is currently unknown.