TheMoodieReport.com

TheMoodieReport.com: "Ferrovial set to up the ante in BAA takeover as it appoints Macquarie as co-advisor � 29/03/06
Source: �The Moodie Report
By Martin Moodie
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SPAIN. The consortium comprising Ferrovial Infraestructuras (of which Grupo Ferrovial is the sole shareholder), Caisse de d�p�t et placement du Qu�bec and an investment company managed by GIC Special Investments Pte Ltd created to acquire UK airports operator BAA, has appointed Macquarie Bank Limited as its financial co-adviser for that operation.

Macquarie will work in conjunction with the consortium's current adviser, Citigroup Global Markets Limited.

Ferrovial Infraestructuras has also reached an agreement with Macquarie Airports under which the two parties grant each other conditional call and put options on the holdings of Ferrovial Aeropuertos (a 100% subsidiary of Ferrovial Infraestructuras) in the capital of the companies owning the rights to Sydney and Bristol airports, in Australia and the UK respectively.

Exercise of the options is conditional upon the acquisition by the Consortium of a controlling stake in the capital of BAA.

If that condition is met, MAp has the option to buy 20.9% of the capital of Sydney Airport and 50% of the capital of Bristol airport from Ferrovial Aeropuertos.

This arrangement seems to eliminate Macquarie as a rival bidder for BAA. It simultaneously strengthens Ferrovial's hand while offering an attractive 'sweetener' to Macquarie.

The strike price of both options is based on the valuation of those assets by MAp in December 2005, net of any earnings distributions which those companies may make after the date of the agreement. Those prices currently amount to approximately A$1.009 billion Australian "

TheMoodieReport.com

TheMoodieReport.com: "Dufry and Egyptair awarded hotly-contested duty free tenders at Sharm el Sheikh Airport � 30/03/06
Source: �The Moodie Report
By Martin Moodie
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The Sharm El Sheikh tender, issued through The Moodie Report, attracted intense interest - and big numbers
EGYPT. Egyptian Airports Company (EAC) has awarded the duty free concessions at Sharm el Sheikh Airport to Dufry International and Egyptair Duty Free respectively, The Moodie Report can reveal.

The company said that Dufry will operate in the current passenger terminal and Egyptair (the current retailer) in the new passenger terminal. �The evaluation was based on both technical evaluation (50%) and financial evaluation (50%),� EAC told The Moodie Report.

Egyptair Duty Free bid alone and not with its partner elsewhere in Egypt Aer Rianta International-Middle East.

Bid levels were as follows:

New terminal

In percentage of sales terms Egyptair topped the league with 34.1% through each year; Aldeasa offered a starting base of 31% rising to 33%; Dufry offered 31% each year; Phoenicia 30% and Cairo Airport Duty Free/Chalhoub 25% rising to 27%.

Phoenicia Trading was the highest overall bidder in MAG terms for the new terminal with a US$48.5 million guarantee over a five-year period (US$8 million in year one rising to US$11.5 million in year five) ahead of Egyptair (the airport incumbent) with US$45 million over the full period; Aldeasa with US$21.1 million; Cairo Airport Duty Free (The Chalhoub Group) with US$19.1 million and Dufry with US$18.7 million.

Current terminal

In percentage of sales terms Dufry topped the league with 31% each year, ahead"

BAA rebuffs Spanish takeover bid-27/03/2006-London-Airline Business

BAA rebuffs Spanish takeover bid-27/03/2006-London-Airline Business: "BAA rebuffs Spanish takeover bid
UK airport operator BAA has rejected a �8.8 billion ($15.45 billion) take-over approach from a consortium led by Spain�s Grupo Ferrovial, worth 810p a share in cash, saying it �does not begin to reflect the true value of BAA�s unique portfolio of airport assets�.
Even though Ferrovial says that it would be willing to increase its offer by �a small increment� in return for BAA agreeing to limited due-diligence access, BAA adds that the �board does not believe it is in shareholders� interests for it to enter into discussions with Ferrovial�. Ferrovial counters by stating: �It is the strong preference of the consortium to proceed with the transaction on a recommended basis�, indicating that it might make a hostile bid by taking its offer directly to shareholders.
Australia�s Macquarie Bank is also understood to be considering an offer. BAA owns and operates seven UK airports, including the three London hubs of Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted, and has management or retail contracts and stakes in airports in Australia, Hungary, Italy and the USA. �"

Europcar to be sold-ar--F.

Europcar to be sold-ar--F.: "French investment company Eurazeo has reportedly secured the �2.27 billion purchase of the car hire business from the German car manufacturer.

The sale, due to be completed by the summer, is subject to approval by competition regulators. It will include Europcar's debt as well as equity and comes after VW considered several options, the BBC reported.

Report by Phil Davies "

GATE GOURMET REFINANCING COMPLETE

GATE GOURMET REFINANCING COMPLETE




RESTON, Va., March 9, 2006 - Global airline caterer Gate Gourmet today finalized a CHF 600 million debt refinancing.

The proceeds from the debt financing, syndicated by Goldman Sachs, have been used to pay down the senior secured debt in full as well as a part of the junior debt, with the remaining junior debt being converted to equity in the company.

The CHF 600 million financing consists of a CHF 400 million first-lien term loan, a CHF 125 million second-lien term loan, a CHF 50 million undrawn revolver and a CHF 25 million Letter of Credit facility. As a result of the refinancing, Gate Gourmet has significantly reduced the debt on its balance sheet, with lower interest payments going forward and very limited requirements to amortize the debt over the life of the facility. Following the refinancing, the company has approximately CHF 65 million of freely available cash on its balance sheet as well as access to the CHF 50 million revolving credit facility, providing ample liquidity to invest in the company's business and strengthen its capability to provide the best possible service to its customers.

As part of the refinancing package, Gate Gourmet's shareholders, led by Texas Pacific Group (TPG), has invested an additional CHF 30 million. TPG will remain the largest shareholder and retain significant control of the board and the company.

Gate Gourmet's restructuring efforts have been recognized by major credit rating agencies. Both Standard & Poor's and Moody's recently upgraded the company's ratings to B- and B2, respectively, with an outlook of "stable."

"The completion of the refinancing represents a major milestone for Gate Gourmet and its employees and reflects the financial community's confidence in the company. With a significantly reduced debt burden and healthy liquidity, Gate Gourmet is well positioned for the future," said David N. Siegel, Chairman and CEO.

Online growth shatters myth of new entrants-ar--F.

Online growth shatters myth of new entrants-ar--F.: "Online growth shatters myth of new entrants



Thomas Cook expects its dotcom business to make double-digit percentage profit this year after being dubbed one of the key success stories of the last 12 months.

UK and Ireland chief executive Manny Fontenla-Novoa said revenue has grown 100% in the past year with similar growth anticipated over the next 12 months.

He declined to reveal precise figures or how much the dotcom buisness contributed to the UK's record �83.3 million profit for the year ending October 2005.

The performance, he added � which helped Thomas Cook become the fourth most visited travel website behind Expedia, Thomson and lastminute � rubbished claims that new entrants would control the online arena.

'Lots of commentators were saying the new entrants would dominate this sector and us old, traditional players would fade and die,' said Fontenla-Novoa. 'But the reality is that of the top five sites, three are classic tour operators. It's a major focus for all of us.'

He stressed the development of the website was not 'growth for the sake of growth' but would have a significant impact on the bottom line.

'We'll have a dotcom business that will nearly hit double digit profit growth this year,' he said.

Fontenla-Novoa said it was closing on lastminute in third place and should break into the top three as other dotcoms talk about a slowdown.

Thomascook.com now accounts for 18% of the operator's summer 2006 package sales - more than MyTravel, TUI and First Choice retail networks combined.

He said there had been a 10% shift away from shops to the web.

Other areas of the business have also performed well, he said, describing the package market as 'resil"

BA outlines �450m cost savings-ar--F.

BA outlines �450m cost savings-ar--F.: "BA outlines �450m cost savings



British Airways aims to achieve cost savings of �450 million in the two years prior to moving into Terminal 5 at Heathrow in March 2008.

The airline wants to drive costs down by �225 million a year over the next two financial years.

A new business plan unveiled by chief executive Willie Walsh includes an investment of almost �200 million in new Club World seats, on-demand films in all cabins and ba.com.

The airline wants to see the proportion of online bookings worldwide through its website rise from a third to half by March 2008.

The plan, which includes improvements in punctuality and baggage performance prior to the switch to the new terminal, comes against a background of the airline's fuel bill being up by around �400 million for 2006-07.

BA also revealed that flights to Australia and Spain will not move to Terminal 5. Instead they will operate alongside Oneworld alliance partners Qantas and Iberia from Heathrow's Terminal 3 from March 2008.

Walsh said: 'This plan will make us fit for the future. By resolving our pensions deficit, reducing cost and delivering world-class customer service, we can make 10% operating margin a sustainable reality.

'Better management of our costs and having an absolute focus on customer needs will give us a lasting platfrom for success.

'Meeting the business plan's objectives will put us in a position to take on our competitors in preparing for growth.' "

Lastminute name new trade manager-ar--F.

Lastminute name new trade manager-ar--F.: "Lastminute name new trade manager



Lastminute.com has appointed Edward Fanning its first group trade marketing manager.

Fanning has been recruited from Manchester Airport where he held the role of trade marketing executive since June 2003.

He will be responsible for developing the group's trade brands, Holiday Autos, Medhotels, eXhilaration, Globepost and holidayandmore.

Creation of the post follows an 18-month integration of lastminute's marketing team which is now headed by marketing director Matthew Hart. "

GDS rivals in airline content deal-ar--F.

GDS rivals in airline content deal-ar--F.: "GDS rivals in airline content deal



Amadeus and Sabre have signed a surprise deal to provide each other with airline inventory should a carrier pull out of one of the systems.

It will enable Sabre agents, via Amadeus, to continue to book an airline that withdraws from the Sabre system and vice versa - in effect protecting each other's back.

The move comes as GDSs prepare to renegotiate their airline deals.

A Sabre spokesman said: 'If a major carrier completely pulls out of Amadeus they'll have the option to access that carrier's content through Sabre within 24 hours. It also works the other way.

'We are getting to a point where we believe it's important to adopt reasonably protective measures over the reliability of the distribution channel.'

He stressed there have been no discussions about extending the agreement to other content.

'This is not a broad day-to-day content sharing agreement,' he said. 'This is simply an arrangement where we can access content if absolutely necessary.

'It gives us the option to at least continue to offer the content for a withdrawing airline for as long as we feel it's necessary to do so for our travel agency customers.'

The deal will surprise many in the industry, particularly as the GDSs are usually seen at each other's throats rather than shaking hands on a deal

Denying that each of the GDSs were throwing away a potential future advantage over its rival, Sabre said both companies had taken a 'wider view.'

'Each of us believe there is more to gain through this than we have to lose,' the spokesman said.

Asked if both both playing safe, he said: 'Yes, absolutely. But let's make no mistake. The level of competition betw"

Airfive

Airfive: "Spain's Ferrovial finds backers in advance of BAA bid 6 March 2006
Ferrovial, the Spanish construction company, is on the verge of receiving financial backing from Santander, HSBC and Royal Bank of Scotland.
BAA is on alert as speculation mounted that the Spanish-led consortium will launch a �10 billion ($17.5 billion) bid this week. BAA has hired investment bank UBS as well as existing adviser Rothschild to defend itself."

Takeover speculation drives market higher

Takeover speculation drives market higher: "The FTSE rose last month, driven higher by speculation about mergers and acquisitions.

However, the 1.2 per cent rise in the FTSE all share index in February was slightly lower than the average rise for the month of 1.9 per cent, figures from Halifax reveal.

'Over the course of February, the total shareholder return of the FTSE All Share rose by 1.2 per cent. One of the main drivers of the market continues to be that of takeover speculation, with companies who have strong growth expectations being the subject of potential bids,' said John Bearman, head of UK equities at Halifax.

The top stock in the FTSE 100 was airports operator BAA - with a 28 per cent rise in total shareholder return. This was driven by rumours of a possible bid by a consortium including Spanish construction company Ferrovial. "

TheMoodieReport.com

TheMoodieReport.com: "Observer newspaper predicts joint Macquarie/Ferrovial bid for BAA �within days� � 27/02/06
Source: The Observer; The Moodie Report
By Martin Moodie
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UK/AUSTRALIA. Australia�s Macquarie Group is set to join forces with Spanish construction giant Ferrovial to mount a �15 billion takeover bid for UK airports operator BAA, according to a report in Sunday�s edition of The Observer
An offer for BAA will be tabled �within days�, the newspaper claimed.

It said Macquarie has switched its sights to BAA after abandoning its �1.5 billion takeover campaign for the London Stock Exchange following the failure to win support from the board and major institutional customers.

Macquarie already shares ownership interests in Bristol and Sydney airports with Ferrovial.

The report said Ferrovial will update investors on its bid preparations when its financial results are released on Monday.

As reported, a Ferrovial-led consortium may also feature Canadian fund manager Caisse de Depot et Placement du Quebec and the Singapore government.

On Friday, airports regular the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) indicated its concern about any takeover bid for BAA that required large amounts of debt. The CAA stressed that it was not prepared to raise caps on airport charges to allow any bidder to generate enough cash to pay down takeover-related debt. "

TheMoodieReport.com

TheMoodieReport.com: "Abertis Infraestructuras, owner of UK regional airport operator TBI, is reportedly interested in acquiring one of BAA's airports as a possible growth opportunity, according to CEO Salvador Alemany.

Speaking to analysts at a presentation on Wednesday of full-year results, Alemany is reported as saying: 'We should study this,' noting that Abertis 'is more suited to grow through acquisitions' rather than organic growth.

TBI controls London Luton, Belfast International and Cardiff airports in the UK, Stockholm Skavsta in Sweden and Orlando Sanford in the US.

This latest newswire report follows speculation that Grupo Ferrovial and Macquarie Bank are teaming up to launch a �15 billion bid for BAA.

When news broke last month that Ferrovial was interested in making an offer for BAA, Abertis issued a statement saying it did not plan to form a consortium with Ferrovial.

Reporting its 2005 full-year results, Abertis said net profit grew +4.6% to �511 million on a +23% increase in operating revenue to �1.906 billion, benefiting from the integration of TBI.

TBI was acquired by Abertis Infraestructuras and AENA, the Spanish state-owned airports group, in late 2004. "

TheMoodieReport.com

TheMoodieReport.com: "BAA has partnered with UK mobile phone firm O2's i-mode platform to deliver live flight and airport information on mobile phones.

Reflecting the rich content of the BAA website, the new i-mode channel features live flight information, details of airport shopping and dining, how to get to each of BAA�s seven UK airports by public transport and car; as well as the ability to pre-book useful travel services such as car parking, travel insurance, lounges and currency.

All i-mode customers can access travel and airport information services for free. Frequent travellers can subscribe to BAA�s live flight information service to access unique live arrivals and departures flight information for London Heathrow, Gatwick, Stansted, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Aberdeen and Southampton airports.

The i-mode site was developed by UK-based Digital Rum.

Commenting on the development, Tom Voice, IT Director at BAA Retail, said: �BAA is excited to be working with Digital Rum in developing this new digital channel for our unique content. This initiative has delivered a high quality site that complements www.baa.com, and gives our customers greater choice in how they access flight and airport information.'

Bob Pike, CEO of mobile CRM at Digital Rum, said: 'Digital Rum welcomes the opportunity to work with BAA, the world�s leading airport operator, to deliver an innovative, fast and intuitive i-mode site that brings BAA's compelling web content to the cutting-edge mobile platform i-mode.'

The BAA i-mode site can be found in the Travel Information section of the O2 i-mode menu. "

TheMoodieReport.com

TheMoodieReport.com: "BAA Retail Director Stephen Nelson has been appointed to the Board, effective 1 April 2006.

He is responsible for all retail activity at BAA�s nine airports, as well as its US retail contracts at Pittsburgh, Boston-Logan and Baltimore airports.

Nelson, 43, joined BAA in September 2005 from J Sainsbury where he was Marketing Director and a member of its Operating Board.

Nelson previously had a number of roles at Diageo, including Managing Director of Guinness Great Britain and President of Diageo (North America) South West. He joined Diageo from J Sainsbury where he held several senior positions. He has also worked at Thorn EMI and OC&C strategy consultants.

Commenting on the appointment, Marcus Agius, Chairman of BAA said: 'I am delighted to welcome Stephen to the BAA Board. His commercial skills will be of immense value to the Board.' "

Worldspan drops into red-ar--F.

Worldspan drops into red-ar--F.: "Worldspan drops into red

Worldspan has blamed a $55.6 million refinancing charge for dropping the company into the red in 2005.

The GDS incurred a net loss of $0.7 million for the year but claimed that without the charge a profit of $54.9 million would have been achieved � a $13 million improvement over 2004.

A range of cost reductions including lower employee costs, communication and technology expenses, maintenance expenses and other expenses led to a 31% improvement in the 2005 operating income to $116.1 million.

Global transaction volumes remained unchanged at 2004 levels, while transaction volumes by online agencies grew by 5% but traditional agency volumes dropped by 5%.

The company reported a fourth quarter net loss of $3.2 million against a loss of $5.6 million in the same three months in 2004. Operating income was up to $10.5 million, a rise of $5.4 million. Global transaction volumes in the quarter were down by 4% year-on-year. Transactions by online agencies dropped by 4% and by traditional agencies by 5%.

Chairman, president and CEO Rakesh Gangwal said: �We are pleased with the continued growth of our operating income in the quarter, given a challenging revenue environment.

�The fourth quarter and the full year results reflect a good year of accomplishments for the company.� "

Insurance Age - Brokers and the web Q&A

Insurance Age - Brokers and the web Q&A: "Brokers and the web Q&A
As more and more consumers search the world wide web for their insurance quotes it becomes even more imperative for brokers to start using this medium more effectively.
Although most of the insurance searches are based around personal lines products such as motor or home there is the strong possibility that basic small and medium-sized enterprise products will also become available online for consumers to purchase.However, many brokers may not even have a web presence or a limited one which only gives basic details such as their address, contacts and a list of products.
That being said, other brokers are waking up to the potential of this media. Insurance Age spoke to one such broker, Simon Hickman, marketing and operations director at Access Underwriting.
When did you first realise you would have to set up a website and start trading on the web?
Soon after we first started trading in 2000 we realised we would need to be able to communicate with potential policyholders so that they could obtain more information about us in order to make a decision on whether to deal with us or not. We also wanted to be able to sell some associated risk management products and this required a shopping cart and online payment facilities.
How did you go about setting up the website?
We started by searching for web developers on the internet and looked at their portfolio of work to see if they had developed websites which contained good online payment facilities and where we liked the look of some of the designs. We then obtained prices and made a decision.
The web developer sourced the web space. The development was quite quick and all communication regarding this process was done by Microsoft Messenger. We have revamped the site once since then and are now in the middle of another major redesi"

TheMoodieReport.com

TheMoodieReport.com: "Civil Aviation Authority warns BAA suitors that airport investment must be factored into financing � 24/02/06
Source: �The Moodie Report
By Martin Moodie
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UK. The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) warned today that any would-be bidder for airport operator BAA should take into account when financing any deal the projected large airport investment required in the future.

Spanish construction group Ferrovial announced on 8 February that it was considering a consortium-driven takeover of BAA.

BAA is currently developing a fifth terminal at Heathrow. It is also planning to build a second runway at London Stansted and redevelop Heathrow Terminal 2.

The CAA is the regulator of UK airports that have been designated by the Secretary of State for price controls and certain public interest issues under the Airports Act 1986. It is undertaking a review of caps on airport charges at BAA�s three designated airports (Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted) for the period 2008-13.

It issued a consultation document called �Airports Regulation: Price Control Review � Consultation on Policy Issues� in December 2005. The CAA said today: �It is for the current or any future owner of designated airports to ensure that they take account of this ongoing review, which is currently at an early stage.�

It added: �The CAA will set caps on airport charges in accordance with its statutory duties and not in order to accommodate any particular financing arrangements adopted. In this context, it is particularly important that in making financing arrangements airport operators recognise the significant near- and medium-term investment required to upgrade airport facilities and accommodate a continuing increase i"

TheMoodieReport.com

TheMoodieReport.com: "UK. In a fascinating address to airport executives at the ACI Europe Airport Trading Conference in London today, BAA Retail Director Stephen Nelson urged the industry to embrace technology to stay ahead.

Nelson, who has been in the BAA job for six months following a career at UK grocery chain Sainsbury's, said the airport retailing industry was relying on passenger growth rather than its own ambition, and was not focused sufficiently on converting customers to spend.

He identified two major problems facing the industry:

- 'Psychic Abuse':

'Customers are not feeling individually treated; they are not feeling listened to and they are not sufficiently excited. We must heal this psychic abuse,' Nelson told delegates.

- 'Time Abuse':

'Long queues and unclear signage mean we abuse travellers' time,' he added. 'Time is very important and we must reduce time abuse.'

Stressing the power of personalisation, he said '[turning the airport into] ski slopes and jungles are not getting at the issue'.

Research had shown that 93% of BAA's customers travel through the airport with mobile phones. In order to make customers feel unique, BAA could send personalised messages to people's phones with prompts about goods to collect at the airport, or could send information about shopping vouchers or special offers.

Harnessing the power of customer feedback was also a key factor, he said. He urged retailers to demonstrate a 'real-time response' by installing electronic pads on the shop floor or beside tills, for example, as seen at Marks & Spencer in the UK high street. The tills ask consumers questions and enable their feedback to be sent to the retailer instantly.

"