Insiders call it the “exchange ratio”. In mergers between companies, it is nothing more than the value attributed to the shares of companies, after comparing them. A fundamental step. With a mechanism very similar – so to speak – to that seen when the Euro was created in 2002: it was established what the conversion rate of the lira – and other currencies – should be with respect to the new currency. Here: even in the highly contested marriage between the airport of Olbia and that of Alghero (currently suspended by the Cagliari court pending the ruling on the merits) everything revolves around this number, which could rewrite the balance of the Sardinian airport sector. And the result obtained so far has not convinced the Region, because it highlights a clear disproportion between the values of the two companies.
Why? The evaluation would be biased in favor of Olbia. In this way, Sogeaal’s share in the Region’s pockets (almost 30% between shares held directly and those controlled by Sfirs), after the merger, risks being watered down. And therefore the weight of the public hand in the airport network of northern Sardinia is destined to be almost non-existent. Strengthening even further the role of F2i, the fund that controls the majority of the airports.
In the opinion prepared for the Board of Directors of the Alghero airport by the firm “Colombo and associates”, the values of the two companies are light years apart. The ratio is one to sixteen. It’s true: the Riviera del Corallo airport has lower passenger traffic: around one and a half million travelers in 2022, revenues of 19 million. At the “Costa Smeralda” there are 3.2 million passengers and revenues reach 81 million. But the experts’ assessment goes far beyond these figures. «On the basis of the analyzes carried out, the range of values identified for 100% of Geasar’s economic capital», we read in the dossier, «is between 327.8 million and 402.9 million». The average figure is 362 million euros. And Sogeaal? In this case the average estimated value is 22.5 million euros. The coefficient used for the merger of the two companies, obtained from these numbers, relegates the Region to a modest 3% of the shareholder base. His weight in the new company would be a tenth of what he currently has in the company that manages the Alghero airport.
And this is precisely one of the aspects contested by the pool of lawyers from the Region before the Cagliari court. The decision is expected in 2025, when the merit hearing will take place. But it cannot be ruled out that there could be some news even before that deadline.
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