Menzies files for an injunction against the ground handling tender
The company that came second in the tender for the concession of ground handling licences at Lisbon, Porto and Faro airports has filed for an injunction to challenge the process.
SPdH, majority-owned by the British firm Menzies, has filed an injunction with the Lisbon Administrative and Tax Court to challenge the process for awarding ground handling licences at Lisbon, Porto and Faro airports.
“This legal action aims to ensure that the process meets the necessary standards of technical rigour, operational realism and legal soundness before any final decision is taken”, the company explains in a statement.
In mid-January, the tender panel awarded the contract to the Spanish consortium comprising Clece, a services company within the ACS group, and South, which belongs to the IAG group and has its roots in Iberia’s ground handling operations. SPdH, which is 50.1% owned by Menzies and 49.9% by TAP and currently holds the licences, came second.
In the statement, Menzies states that it “disagrees with the design of the tender process and the way in which it was conducted”, considering “that it does not adequately reflect the operational scale, complexity and safety requirements inherent in ground handling activities at Portugal’s busiest airports”.
It also expresses concern that the process “has not established a realistic and sufficiently robust transition framework between operators, including adequate provisions for the transfer of staff, operational knowledge and critical resources, in line with recognised principles of employment protection”.
In the company’s view, “the absence of a properly structured transition period significantly increases the risk of operational disruption”, at a time when the sector is approaching the summer season.
Menzies has also criticised the proposal put forward by the Clece/South consortium, arguing that “it raises doubts as to its viability under real operating conditions, particularly during periods of peak traffic”. The company claims that “the plan does not clearly demonstrate how resources would be allocated when flights overlap or when traffic reaches its peak”.
The Spanish consortium has been pressing ahead with the process of obtaining licences from the National Civil Aviation Authority (ANAC). According to a statement from the Aviation and Airports Workers’ Union (SITAVA) and the Handling, Aviation and Airports Workers’ Union (STHAA), it had until Monday 16 March to submit all the documentation required by the tender.
Menzies holds the licences until 19 May, after the Portuguese Government decided to extend their validity.
