Royal Schiphol Group will acquire a 40% interest in Maastricht Aachen Airport (MAA) in the Netherlands for €4.2m (US$4.1m).
With this collaboration, MAA intends to focus on the development of a sustainable, futureproof airport. Electric flying will be one of the main priorities. An environmental fund will be created with contributions from governments and companies. Royal Schiphol Group will also contribute €800,000 (US$796,000) to the fund.
According to the companies, this cooperation is in line with the government’s aviation policy, requests from parliament (Tweede Kamer) and the amendment of the Provincial Council of Limburg. On June 3, 2022, the Provincial Council (PS) of the Province of Limburg decided to keep the airport open, instructing the Committee of Regional Ministers to submit a proposal before the end of the year with a business case that gave substance to eight points. One of these points is that the governance structure must be adjusted, whereby the starting point is that the province is no longer the sole shareholder of MAA. The other conditions will then be finalized and the proposal submitted to the PS for approval on December 16, 2022.
Robert Carsouw, chief financial officer of Royal Schiphol Group, said, “Our contribution to society is to connect the Netherlands with the rest of the world. Regional airports are an important element in this strategy. The idea that airports in the Netherlands form a single system, as expressed in the Dutch aviation policy, is very appealing to us. By collaborating intensively and investing in Maastricht Aachen Airport, we can share knowledge and expertise and make optimal use of the scarce capacity available in the Netherlands.”
Jos Roeven, CEO of MAA, commented, “We are very pleased that in Schiphol we have found the right strategic partner to invest in our ambition to make MAA an innovative and sustainable airport that is well embedded in its region.”
Stephan Satijn, Limburg’s Regional Minister for Economy, Land Management and Education, added, “With the agreement in principle that has now been concluded, we are making enormous progress in the instruction we received from the Provincial Council of Limburg June 3 this year. We see Royal Schiphol Group as a professional partner that can help build the transition from MAA to a sustainable and futureproof airport that also contributes to the economy of Limburg and the national economy.”