Dublin Terminals

roundymac

Saw in to-days Irish Indo that Ml O Leary wants to buy one of the terminals in Dublin Airport. He said he is prepared to offer €350m for the old terminal T1. He also said the he would pay €350m for the new terminal T2 if they offered it to him instead, as that's all he considers it's worth. He states that the state will be required to sell off state assets as part of the bail-out agreement, starting with Aer Lingus. He added that if it was sold to Ryanair, another buyer would break it up, whereas we'll (Ryanair) grow passanger numbers to 20m over 3-4 years and grow the fleet from 30 to 60 aircraft.
Is this more sabre rattleing by O'Leary or is it how people see it paning out in the future. Looking forwards to your views.

Dublin Spotter

Don't think it would ever happn. Ryanair would be creating a monopoly and we all know how they hate them!!!!!!!

If the DAA is split. DUB will stay under DAA and Cork and Shannon sold off or partly privatised like already said be Gov.

I would also say that DAA and Aer Lingus would be the last of state assits to go.

Fingal county council have already said they are strongly opposed to Dublin Airprot being privatised.

Ryanair will never be allowed to take over Aer Lingus.

Ald

If he's considering buying T1 in Dublin does that mean he'd consider buying Stanstead when that comes up for sale when BAA are forced to sell due to competition regulation in England?! Would make sense to me...

seanmacc

Some people seem to think it odd and unfair for an airline to own a terminal or airport but its a concept thats widely practised in the Marine Shipping industry. Stena Line for example owns the port of Holyhead and has a huge stake in several other European ports. It still means that they have to abide by competition law and treat their competitors on an equal playing field when it comes to things like slot times, landing charges ect.

lord lucan

I'd echo what Dublin Spotter says. Dublin Airport would be regarded as a key strategic state asset and unlikely to be sold. Shannon and Cork would be much more likely to be told to find their own feet and sold.

Can't see how FR would be allowed full ownership of EI due to competition rules let alone also own a terminal at the capital city's airport. Not sure how he figures he'd achieve them growth figures either. Some of the figures he throws around seem to be pie in the sky and aimed at the general public who'll think they sound great.

One of my bugbears with FR is the figures they bandy about. I admire their success,even more so as an Irish airline. But T2 didn't cost €1.2bn,it cost €600M. I'm not sure if it's a case of say it enough and it'll stick but it's plain wrong. Likewise some of the crazy figures they've used to shock people if they pulled out of X airport or didn't get the use of X hangar.

As i say,i admire the airline but i just wish they'd pull away from the juvenile press releases and hyperbole about the DAA/BAA/Travel tax etc. They're not the young upstart airline craving attention anymore,they're a huge player in the aviation business. Sorry about the rant.:o

roundymac

The gov might have no choice, it's the ECB/IMF that are calling the shot's, just look at the property tax.

L1011

Ald wrote: »

If he's considering buying T1 in Dublin does that mean he'd consider buying Stanstead when that comes up for sale when BAA are forced to sell due to competition regulation in England?! Would make sense to me...

He's already made a 2Bn sterling offer for either STN or LGW in times past but then claimed it was a joke when rejected.

lord lucan wrote: »

As i say,i admire the airline but i just wish they'd pull away from the juvenile press releases and hyperbole about the DAA/BAA/Travel tax etc.

They lost all ability to moan about a €3 charge when they introduced €11-a-leg unavoidable charges (checkin and the "covering our legal responsibilities as an air carrier" charge).

roundymac

Ald wrote: »

If he's considering buying T1 in Dublin does that mean he'd consider buying Stanstead when that comes up for sale when BAA are forced to sell due to competition regulation in England?! Would make sense to me...

He is already on record saying that he won't buy Stanstead. By being the largest customer at Stanstead and by the way it's going will be one of the few airlines there he will derive satisfaction winding them up, because that what it seems to me is whats he's about.

dubdaymo

If Dublin goes up for sale I don't want Ryanair to buy it. I'd be hoping that whoever now runs Gatwick would buy it. I was through there a couple of times this summer and it is unrecognisable from the dump it was when the BAA owned it.

Jamie2k9

Dublin Airport is carrying around 1.2billion debet and what person would buy an Airport for lets say 700million (FR figures for each Terminal) and then take on the detet of 1.2 billion.

If it goes for sale it will be on the market for a long time.

David086

Wont happen just O'Leary looking for attention.

Tenger

Jamie2k9 wrote: »

Dublin Airport is carrying around 1.2billion debt.......

Yes but the E1.2Bn redevelopment plan is designed as a long term investment. The DAA have stated that T2 will be in use for 30 years, so E600M over 30 years is not too bad. Considering the amount of couples/families in Ireland who are carrying debts of E300-600K in mortgages, the DAA aren't doing too badly.

It's all in the way MoL says things, he ignores that fact that the E1.2Bn figure includes at least 200M used to build Pier D for FR and to renovate Hanger 1+2 for FR use as compensation for losing their old hanger...................

........"lies, damn lies and statistics" as the old adage goes.

dubdaymo

the E1.2Bn figure includes at least 200M used to build Pier D for FR

I seem to recall that Ryanair offered to build Pier D for free thus saving the taxpayer a cool 200M that we could do with having right now. Of course, this was never on as it would have spelled the end of the monopoly (I'm not MOL, BTW;))

L1011

dubdaymo wrote: »

I seem to recall that Ryanair offered to build Pier D for free thus saving the taxpayer a cool 200M that we could do with having right now. Of course, this was never on as it would have spelled the end of the monopoly (I'm not MOL, BTW;))

Pier D and Pier D-X were needed for a LOT of other airlines before T2 opened, so having Ryanair build one for themselves wasn't an option

O'Leary has never offered anything that would benefit anyone other than himself.