Airports and management

In March 2007, 19 years ago, hundreds of representatives of the so-called Catalan civil society filled the Iese to the brim in an event that became a true claim for the need to bring the management of a key infrastructure such as Barcelona airport closer to the territory. Almost two decades have passed since then and the issue, which has been resurfacing over the years, is back on the table, now with a public-private centralized operator, Aena. Issues that have been raised for a long time have not yet been resolved, such as the accounts of each of the airports in the network – they are presented as a whole, without detailing the parts that make them up or what some gain and others lose, or which ones subsidize the others, etc.

And again, moreover, the old claim for management arises. Especially after the Spanish government has agreed with the Basque executive on its participation in the management of the three Basque airports. Despite an initial contrary reaction from Maurici Lucena, the president of Aena – in which the State has a majority stake of 51% – it was later qualified. And we then enter into readings and interpretations: in reality, it is about deepening the coordination with the territories and not about applying "co-management". Pedro Sánchez's pact with the lehendakari provided for the creation of a "bilateral body for collaboration and coordination" so that Euskadi can participate in the management of the airports.

In this context, President Salvador Illa assured Parliament this week that the agreement for Catalonia to participate in airport management "will be quite immediate." This was in response to ERC, which considers this point essential for the legislature. The investiture agreement provided for the creation of the Catalan Airport Authority, which is still pending. For now, the territorial committee created in all autonomies in 2014 to debate strategies and investments, and which Aena assures has not yet been activated, will meet.

The challenge will be to reconcile the political commitments acquired by the Spanish government – the main shareholder of Aena through Enaire – with the PNB in the Basque Country and with ERC in Catalonia, with those of the private party, which controls the remaining 49% of Aena's capital. The interests of one and the other do not necessarily have to be always coincident. One way to overcome this could be to emphasize form over substance, that is, to enter the realm of interpretations. The fact of talking about participating in management can mean many things, ranging from intervening – a possibility that Aena sees as impossible – to being part of it with a voice, but perhaps without a vote, or with very little.

In Spain, the airport network is centralized, while in France, Germany, or Italy there are mixed models, in the United Kingdom airports are private, and in the USA they are locally publicly managed. Perhaps a more effective option, and one more in line with territorial demands, and probably more efficient, would be to analyze how to reform the current governance model so that management is as close as possible to the territories.