PIF acquires 15% stake in London’s Heathrow airport

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Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) has acquired a 15 percent stake in FGP TopCo, the holding company of Heathrow Airport Holdings.

The stake was purchased from Spanish infrastructure giant Ferrovial and other FGP TopCo shareholders.

Simultaneously, Ardian, a Paris-headquartered private equity fund, has acquired 22.6 percent of FGP TopCo from the same shareholders through a separate vehicle.

In June, PIF and Ardian agreed to buy Ferrovial’s 37.6 percent stake in the UK’s busiest airport.

Ferrovial announced an agreement in November 2023 to sell its entire 25 percent stake for £2.4 billion ($3 billion), valuing the whole airport at £9.5 billion. The new deal, however, values Heathrow at £8.7 billion.

PIF deputy governor and head of international investments Turqi Al-Nowaiser said the fund believes in the importance of infrastructure as a key sector in supporting the transition to net zero.

“Heathrow acts as a crucial gateway to the world,” he said, adding that PIF will support Heathrow’s management to secure sustainable growth and maintain its position as a global aviation hub.

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Qatar already holds 20 percent of Heathrow’s capital, while other investors Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec, Singapore’s GIC sovereign fund and the Australian Retirement Trust each have stakes below 13 percent.  

In February, Bloomberg reported that Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala Investment Company was studying the possibility of acquiring a stake in Heathrow.

Ferrovial has held a stake in Heathrow since 2006, when it acquired a majority of the airport for $20 billion. Over time, the company has progressively reduced its stake.