P3

France's Vinci to invest $820 million in Mexico airport, governor says


The logo of Vinci is pictured on the A62 motorway in Saint-Jory

Mon, December 19, 2022 

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - French airport operator Vinci will invest $820 million in renovating an airport in the Mexican business hub of Monterrey in the northern state of Nuevo Leon, the state's governor said on Monday.

The investment follows Vinci's purchase earlier this month of a near-30% stake in Mexican airport administrator OMA that owns the Monterrey International Airport.

Nuevo Leon Governor Samuel Garcia on his Instagram account shared clips from his meeting with Vinci representatives.

A Vinci spokesperson did not immediately respond to Reuters' request for comment.

A presentation shared on Garcia's Instagram said that Vinci viewed the Monterrey airport as "the best alternative to Mexico City airport" and that it had "great potential."

It also said that Vinci Airports was planning to "engage in strong partnerships" with Mexican airlines Aeromexico and Viva Aerobus to build up their customer bases.

Vinci earlier this month said it would start direct flights between Monterrey, whose international airport alone it said represents about half of OMA's passenger traffic, and Los Angeles, Houston, Detroit and Austin.

The French firm became OMA's biggest shareholder when it finalised its $1.17 billion stake purchase earlier this month, it said.

(Reporting by Kylie Madry and Sarah Morland; Editing by Mark Porter)