Exits from some regional airports in Australia are possible this year as two pension funds and a big airport investor mull their options in Queensland, the third most populated state in the country (with 5.5 million inhabitants) and the second-fastest growing at 2.6% (behind Victoria) according to the Australia Bureau of Statistics.

State Super, Australian Retirement Trust, and The Infrastructure Fund (TIF), which together own more than 70% of Queensland Airports Limited (QAL)—the operator of Gold Coast (OOL), Townsville (TSV), Mount Isa (ISA), and Longreach (LRE) airports—have decided to sell.

According to media reports, these shareholders have engaged financial advisory firm Barrenjoey to steer them through a sale process. Macquarie Capital is also involved. The stakes of the three investors in 2023 were as follows: State Super (17.35%), Australian Retirement Trust (16.89%, and TIF (35.77%, although this has since risen to 40%). Another major shareholder is Perron Investments with 24.62% in 2023.

Initially, the two superannuation funds wanted to make a full exit, while TIF, a vehicle of Macquarie Asset Management (MAM) established in 1998 and the biggest shareholder, was said to be looking at a partial sell-down. However, in September last year, that position changed as TIF decided to offload its whole stake.

Across QAL’s four airports, Gold Coast is the largest with 6.2 million passengers last year, making it the sixth busiest gateway in Australia according to Australia’s Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications and the Arts.

TIF also has a 27% stake in North Queensland Airports Group, which runs Cairns (CNS) and Mackay (MKY) airports and the Mackay Airport Hotel, and a 7.2% shareholding in Perth Airport (PER), the country’s fourth busiest airport with 12.2 million passengers in 2023.

Resetting QAL

A sale this year makes sense on a number of levels and an auction process has begun (more below). QAL is back on form, recording strong passenger growth in 2023 of 10% and processing 8.1 million customers at its four airports. Of that, the more than six million passengers passing through Gold Coast Airport last year were almost back to pre-Covid records, while Townsville reported its busiest year in more than a decade.

Infrastructure projects as well as upcoming external opportunities make Gold Coast Airport, in particular, a potentially good future investment within the QAL estate. Below, AirportIR looks at the factors new investors bidding in the current auction will likely consider.

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