| Agence
France Presse May 6, 2004 SINGAPORE THE Singapore government's investment arm, Temasek Holdings, said Thursday, May 6, it was selling its 78.4 percent stake in a ground handling and inflight catering company based at Changi Airport. Temasek said in a statement the sale of its stake in Changi International Airport Services Pte. Ltd. (CIAS) is part of a "continuous review of its investment portfolio" which calls for divestment of interests in non-strategic sectors of the economy. Temasek said it hopes to attract interest from a "strategic investor". It said other shareholders, including Air France, KLM, aviation service provider GlobeGround, China Airlines, Garuda and Lufthansa, have also agreed to sell the remaining 21.6 percent stake they hold in CIAS. "We believe that a strategic investor will be able to help CIAS realise its potential of being a global leader in ground handling, inflight catering and airport related services," Temasek managing director for strategic development Margaret Lui said. Temasek's move to divest from CIAS came after the Changi airport operator, the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore, sought tenders for a third ground handling agent and caterer. CIAS and Singapore Airport Terminal Services, a subsidiary of Singapore Airlines, are currently the only providers of such services at Changi. Temasek and its stable of affiliated companies already dominate strategic sectors of the city-state's economy, from the airlines to banks, ports, telecommunications companies and utility firms. |
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