Industry

Catania-Comiso airports, Sac publishes notice: search for private partner begins

The company that manages the airports launches the procedure to sell a stake of no less than 51 per cent. Applications must be received by 3 June

by Nino Amadore

4 May 2026

2' min read

Translated by AI

Versione italiana

Key points

Openness to the market
High requirements and central business plan
The industrial dossier
Political controversy

2' min read

Translated by AI

Versione italiana

The privatisation of Sac is entering the operational phase. The company that manages the airports of Catania and Comiso has started the procedure to select an economic operator to whom it will sell a majority stake, in any case not less than 51% of the share capital. Expressions of interest must arrive by 11.59pm on 3 June 2026, exclusively via Pec and with a digital signature.

The opening to the market

Sac, of which Nico Torrisi is CEO, is today controlled by public shareholders. The main share is held by the Southeast Sicily Chamber of Commerce, with around 60.64%; followed by the Metropolitan City of Catania, Libero Consorzio di Siracusa and Irsap, each with around 12.12%; smaller shares are held by the municipalities of Catania and Comiso. The Catania airport concession runs until 2049, while Comiso entered the Sac perimeter after the incorporation of Soaco.

The procedure will be divided into three stages: first the collection of expressions of interest and verification of requirements; then the preliminary offers with business plan; and finally the binding offers. A maximum of five bidders will be admitted to the final phase.

High requirements and central business plan

The notice restricts the field to heavyweight operators. What is required is an average annual turnover of at least 150 million in the best three years of the last five, a net worth of not less than 300 million, and specific experience in airport management for at least five years in the last ten.

The competition, however, will not only be played on price. The business plan will have to score at least 80 points out of 100 to qualify for the final stage. Traffic growth, cash generation, infrastructural and intermodal solutions, financial sustainability, and economic, employment and social impacts on the territory will all count.

The Industrial Dossier

The moment is also relevant for the company's numbers. The 2025 balance sheet closed with a net profit of 8 million, a production value of 112.2 million and commercial revenues of 30 million. The Catania and Comiso airports reached a total of around 12.5 million passengers.

The publication of the notice comes after the Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport gave the go-ahead for the privatisation procedure. In recent weeks, the game had already attracted the attention of the market: Reuters indicated Abu Dhabi's sovereign wealth fund ADQ as one of the potential interested parties, with a possible valuation of the asset of between EUR 500 and 600 million.

The political controversy

The political front remains open. Democratic Party Senator Antonio Nicita has submitted a question to the government on the procedure, asking for clarification on the privatisation process and the guarantees for an infrastructure considered strategic for eastern Sicily.

The decisive step will now be 3 June. From then on it will become clear how many operators will really be ready to enter the game and whether the privatisation of Sac will become a competitive tender or a more restricted negotiation.