Groundforce was declared insolvent in 2021 and the Subscription Agreement that Menzies Aviation has signed with TAP Air Portugal and Groundforce will give it a controlling stake of 50.1%.
The Subscription Agreement establishes the general terms and conditions of Groundforce’s Recovery Plan.
Once necessary authorisations and consents have been received, the Recovery Plan should be submitted by the Insolvency Administrators for Groundforce’s Creditor Assembly to discuss and review, Menzies said in a statement.
In August 2022, National Aviation Services, which joined forces with Menzies Aviation last year under the ownership of Agility, was selected as a preferred bidder for Groundforce.
Hassan El-Houry, Chairman of Menzies Aviation, said: “We have strong conviction in the global aviation industry, and we are encouraged by the pace of recovery for both passenger and cargo volumes following the pandemic disruption. This transaction is further evidence of our scale and ability to enter a market in a meaningful way, as a long-term investor with a strong commitment to deliver industry leading services to airline and airport customers. We look forward to working with the Groundforce team to take advantage of the opportunities in this market.”
Groundforce handles 100,000 aircraft turns a year at Portugal’s 5 busiest airports, Humberto Delgado Airport in Lisbon, Francisco Sa Carneiro Airport in Porto, Gago Coutinho Airport in Faro, Madeira International Airport and Porto Santo Airport in Madeira.
