Cape Verde’s public concessionaire Aeroportos e Segurança Aérea (ASA) has completed the sale of 51% of the airport handling company CV Handling to the air cargo management company Swissport, with plans to offer up to 10% of the equity in a public offering to employees and emigrants, Lusa reported on Thursday, August 13.
“With the completion of this transaction, the process of selecting a strategic partner for CV Handling, as well as the divestiture process initiated in 2024, has been successfully concluded,” ASA announced in a statement.
As a result of the transaction, Swissport now holds a majority stake in CV Handling.
ASA stated that the Swiss company’s entry will allow CV Handling to benefit from international experience and strengthen its technical and operational capabilities. The company also added that the partnership aims to preserve jobs and enhance professional training.
The planned investment includes infrastructure modernization, the introduction of technological solutions, and the professional development of Cape Verdean employees.
The privatization also includes a public offering of shares to CV Handling employees and Cape Verdean emigrants, covering up to 10% of the equity. “Up to 5% of the equity will be reserved for employees and at least 5% for Cape Verdean emigrants,” ASA added.
The transaction is being finalized after the Cape Verdean government announced in March that it had selected Swissport to acquire a majority stake in the state-owned company as part of the privatization process.
At the time, the government indicated that the Swiss company had been selected after presenting a plan that called for preserving jobs and investing in employee training.
Founded in 2014, CV Handling is the only licensed operator providing air transport support services in Cape Verde and employs 498 workers.
Swissport operates at 300 airports in 45 countries and serves approximately 250 million passengers per year, in addition to handling more than five million metric tons of air cargo.
