Trevor Sargent (Dublin North, Green Party)
Link to this: Individually | In context

Question 171: To ask the Minister for Transport if he will elaborate on his reply to Question No. 872 of 25 of January 2006 on honouring the commitment that Shannon and Cork Airports will not be burdened by debt when they become independent; the accumulated debts of Shannon and Cork Airports; if he will clarify what he means in stating that the capital structures of each of the State airports is subject to determining the optimum mechanisms for allocating airport assets among the three airports, having regard to the capital maintenance rules and other provisions of the Companies Acts. [6244/06]

Martin Cullen (Waterford, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context

Under the State Airports Act 2004, before any assets can transfer to either the Shannon or Cork Airport Authorities, the Ministers for Transport and Finance will have to be satisfied as to the financial and operational readiness of the airport authorities. Accordingly, each airport authority is required to prepare a comprehensive business plan and obtain the Ministers' approval for these plans before any assets can be transferred.

Under the provisions of the Companies Acts the only way that the assets could be vested in the Cork and Shannon Airport Authorities is for the Dublin Airport Authority to make a distribution from its distributable reserves of a sum equivalent to the value of the assets. However, DAA currently does not have enough distributable assets to dividend out the assets of both Shannon and Cork Airports at the same time.

The level of debt associated with the assets of Shannon and Cork Airports and the level of distributable reserves required to transfer those assets to the two authorities will emerge from the work currently underway on the development of business plans by the three airport authorities. The outcome of the business planning process will provide a basis for determining the most feasible options for carrying through the restructuring. The ability of the airport authorities to operate on a fully commercial basis will be fully assessed as part of this process and will be factored into the decisions made.