The consortium comprising VINCI Airports, the Caisse des Dépôts and Crédit Agricole Assurances will be acquiring 60% of the capital of Aéroports de Lyon (ADL)

On closing of an invitation to tender, the French State, which held 60% of Aéroports de Lyon, named the VINCI Airports – Caisse des Dépôts – Crédit Agricole Assurances consortium as preferred buyer of its shares in ADL today, 28 April. ADL holds a concession contract running until 31 December 2047 for Lyon Saint-Exupéry, France's second-largest regional airport, and the Lyon Bron airport.

Three complementary partners to serve development of the Lyon airports

The successful bid is the fruit of a solid partnership between three complementary partners:VINCI Airports, investor, programme manager and experienced operator of airports across the world; the Caisse des Dépôts Group, a long-term investor serving the public interest and regional economic development, and Crédit Agricole Assurances, leading bank-insurance player in France and in Europe.

As majority shareholder, the consortium will ensure development, investment and operation of these two airports, which generated consolidated EBITDA of €53 million in 2015. As operator, the consortium will strive to support and encourage growth of traffic and development of the two airports, while also guaranteeing the best possible quality of service for passengers.

The consortium's three members all enjoy strong positions in the region in their different fields of intervention and have broad experience of concessions.

With 8,7 million passengers welcomed in Lyon in 2015, this new concession confirms the dynamic growth of VINCI Airports in France and consolidates its position as one of the top five players in the world airport market. VINCI Airports, which has a network of 36 airports, will manage annual traffic of around 125 million passengers looking to end 2016. The VINCI Group employs more than 11,00 people in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region and generated revenue of €2.3 billion in 2015.

With this equity stake, the Caisse des Dépôts, historic partner to local authorities, confirms its commitment to the growth and economic and tourist development of the Lyon metropolitan area and, more broadly, the new greater Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region. Drawing on its experience and its investment portfolio of over €180 million in infrastructure and regional development through over 120 equity stakes (including more than 40 local public-private enterprises), it is well-placed to facilitate relations between private industrial partners and local public shareholders.

Lastly, for Crédit Agricole Assurances, this operation is a perfect fit with its strategy as a long-term institutional investor keen to diversify its investments - a strategy that primarily entails financing large-scale projects to foster strong regional development. In the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, Crédit Agricole Assurances is co-buyer of the Grand Hôtel Dieu, an emblematic Lyon site that will become a new city neighbourhood featuring a mix of shops, offices, a hotel and housing.