Hochtief conducts due diligence at Budapest Airport until end-November

City

German construction service provider Hochtief AG Tuesday said it was conducting a due diligence audit at Budapest Airport Zrt to be finalized at the end of November, Dow Jones Newswires reported from Vienna.

Hochtief is still aiming to strike a deal by the end of the year to buy a stake of 75% minus one share in the airport from UK-based airport operator BAA Plc, executive board member Peter Noe told reporters in a presentation following the release of the company's third-quarter earnings report. Chief executive Hans-Peter Keitel said BAA wants to sell the stake for at least €1.9 billion, but added that Hochtief "won't pay inflated prices." "We'll find a creative way to combine both positions," he said. Hochtief announced on October 20 that it leads a consortium, which also includes Caisse de Depot et Placement du Quebec and German state-owned bank KfW, that seeks to buy the stake from BAA.
Spain's Grupo Ferrovial bought BAA earlier this year. BAA bought its stake in Budapest Airport from the Hungarian government just one year ago in a €1.9 billion deal. Its bid prevailed over offers by German airport operator Fraport AG and Hochtief.

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