The bidding process for the privatization of Azores Airlines received two bids, submitted by the Atlantic Consortium and the NewTour/MSAviation consortium, which offered €6.50 for each share of the company responsible for connections with the outside of the Azores.

The announcement was made during the public opening of bids for the international public tender for the carrier’s privatization, which occurred yesterday at the SATA Group headquarters in Ponta Delgada.

Because the two consortia presented the same value for the purchase, the jury decided to apply the tender criteria, which requires different values, so both will be invited to present new deals, and bidding will be suspended.

The two consortia are linked to the tourism sector, with the first having rental aircraft companies and the second, belonging to Azorean Tiago Raiano, recently acquired an aircraft company related to luxury travel, MSAviation.

The Atlantic Consortium includes some Azorean businessmen, one linked to travel agencies.

Among some Azorean businessmen contacted yesterday by our newspaper, there was a tone of discouragement because they hoped that some aviation company would compete.

“As far as I know, Binter consulted the booklet but did not compete; it was the company in which I placed some hope,” a businessman from Ponta Delgada told us, while another expressed his discontent “because the two consortia may be good in tourism, but they do not bring added value in terms of aviation.”

“Azores Airlines needed more muscle linked to its ‘core business.’ It is a pity that it was not so,” he adds.

On March 7, the Azorean executive revealed that the specifications for the privatization of Azores Airlines provided for a sale of at least 51% and a maximum of 85% of the share capital of the regional public company.

Privatizing bidding was opened that month, with 90 days to submit bids until June 20. Still, the deadline was extended until July 31, following “informal and formal requests” from interested parties.

Pedro Castro, commercial aviation expert

“SATA’s situation has frightened aviation groups.”

At the time of the announcement of the privatization of Azores Airlines, commercial aviation expert and director of Skyexpert Pedro Castro predicted to Diário dos Açores newspaper that no aviation company would be interested in the Azorean carrier.

The assumptions for his prediction remain, and because he was right, we wanted to hear again from this aviation consultant and usual SIC-Notícias commentator on air transport matters.

For Pedro Castro, the two proposals received – from the Atlantic Consortium and the national tour operator Newtour with roots in the archipelago – confirm the vocation of Azores Airlines: a company focused on the Atlantic and the transportation of tourists.

“The absence of airline groups from the race does not surprise me: in addition to liabilities, the existing airport infrastructure and the investment needed in fleet and personnel to replicate an Icelandair-type hub in the Azores has certainly scared these groups away,” he tells “Diário dos Açores.”

“On the other hand, this public tender for the privatization of Azores Airlines should be observed as an antechamber to the privatization of TAP itself:

– the initial period of 90 days was not enough for the candidates to evaluate a small company with a fleet of only eight planes – it was necessary to extend the period for another 40 days; evaluating an airline requires time, a lot of research, and consideration.

– More than 30 entities accessed the bidding specifications, but only two put concrete proposals on the table. There is a massive difference between “interested” and “potential buyer,” concludes Pedro Castro.

This news story is from Diário dos Açores, Osvaldo Cabral, director.

It was translated to English as a community outreach program from the Portuguese Beyond Borders Institute (PBBI) and the Modern and Classical Languages and Cultures Department (MCLL) as part of Bruma Publication and ADMA (Azores-Diaspora Medial Alliance)  at California State University, Fresno.