Minister hopes for Prague airport float next year

The sale could follow the current privatisation of neighbouring Hungary's main airport which generated strong demand from strategic investors.

Letiste Praha (Airport Prague) -- newly renamed from Ceska Sprava Letist (Czech Airport Authority) -- must first be converted from a state enterprise into a joint stock company.

Simonovsky told reporters during an opening of a part of a new terminal on Thursday he wanted the government to approve the change early next year.

"If all works out we can roughly in several months (after that) bring it to the stock exchange. We will see," he said.

He said it was not ruled out that the float could come before the June general election.

The timing and method for the airport's privatisation has been a moving target, and Simonovsky's comments were slightly more optimistic on the timing than some previous estimates.

Simonovsky, whose ministry oversees the company, said it has not yet been decided whether the government would sell some of its shares in the planned flotation or issue new stock.

A share issue is an option to fund the airport's new runway, due to be built from 2007, he said.

"We need money because the participation of the state budget (in building the runway) is excluded," Simonovsky said, adding that a loan was also an option.

The company has already taken out a 9 billion-crown ($379.7 million) loan from the European Investment Bank to build the terminal. A part of the terminal was opened on Thursday, and the rest will be completed by the end of the year.

The airport expects more than 10 million passengers this year, following 15 percent growth in the first half to 4.85 million. Bankers' estimates from earlier this year put the Czech airport's value at around 17 billion crowns ($717.3 million) but the state is not expected to float more than 49 percent.

Investors bid as much as $1.96 billion for smaller Budapest airport earlier this month. The sale however hit a snag on Wednesday when a court halted the sale due to a lack of consultation with the unions.

Source: Reuters