{"id":924875,"date":"2026-10-08T04:54:09","date_gmt":"2026-10-08T04:54:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/924875\/"},"modified":"2026-10-08T04:54:09","modified_gmt":"2026-10-08T04:54:09","slug":"vancouver-airport-first-candidate-for-private-investment-sources-say","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/924875\/","title":{"rendered":"Vancouver airport first candidate for private investment, sources say"},"content":{"rendered":"

Open this photo in gallery:<\/a><\/p>\n

Indigenous investors are expected to take a minority stake of up to 20 per cent in YVR, two of the sources said, with majority control sold to institutional investors experienced in operating these complex facilities.DARRYL DYCK\/The Canadian Press<\/p>\n

Vancouver International Airport is poised to become the first of the country\u2019s large airports privatized by the federal government, as Ottawa\u2019s advisers offer British Columbia Indigenous<\/a> groups an opportunity to be minority investors, four sources say.<\/p>\n

Three weeks after Prime Minister Mark Carney<\/a> announced plans to open up four of the country\u2019s biggest airports to private investment, the bankers and lawyers advising Ottawa have decided Vancouver\u2019s airport, known in the industry as YVR, should be the first facility where a long-term lease on its ground operations is sold to outside investors, according to the sources, who are involved in the process.<\/p>\n

YVR earned first spot in line because the government and its advisers expect to land First Nations investment, the sources said. The Globe and Mail is not naming the sources because they are not permitted to speak for their employers. <\/p>\n

Mr. Carney made the privatization pitch during September\u2019s investment summit in downtown Toronto, where he gathered executives with the goal of drawing new capital to Canada and reframing the country\u2019s approach to investment. But the plan has raised concerns about the potential for increased prices for travellers and higher fees for airlines.<\/p>\n

Along with YVR, the federal government plans to sell leases to run all or part of Calgary, Toronto and Montreal\u2019s airports. The federal government will retain ownership of the underlying land and assets, a structure that is common in Europe and Australia. <\/p>\n

Opinion: A private airport concession need not be the bogeyman some think it is<\/a><\/p>\n

Indigenous investors are expected to take a minority stake of up to 20 per cent in YVR, two of the sources said, with majority control sold to institutional investors experienced in operating these complex facilities. Leading candidates for this role are large domestic pension plans such as the Public Sector Pension Investment Board, known as PSP Investments, which already operates airports in Europe and Puerto Rico. <\/p>\n

The federal government and its advisers want Indigenous investment in YVR and other airports as part of a strategy to promote reconciliation and address concerns that privatizing operations will mean handing control to faceless asset managers, or foreign airport operators. <\/p>\n

The government\u2019s airport privatization process is in its early stages, and the timing and structure of investments could change, according to the four sources. <\/p>\n

Indigenous investors listening to pitches for stakes in YVR include the Musqueam First Nation, two of the sources said. The airport, located in the Vancouver suburb of Richmond, is on the Musqueam\u2019s unceded territory. <\/p>\n

Last year, the First Nation struck a revenue-sharing agreement with the federal government on YVR, the country\u2019s second-busiest airport. <\/p>\n

What could airport privatization mean for travellers in Canada?<\/a><\/p>\n

On Wednesday, Musqueam chief administrative officer Robyn McVicker said the First Nation wants a role in YVR\u2019s future.<\/p>\n

\u201cFollowing the Prime Minister\u2019s announcement at the Canada Investment Summit, Musqueam indicated to government that any discussion and plans about the future of YVR must include meaningful participation by Musqueam Indian Band,\u201d said Ms. McVicker in an e-mail. She said: \u201cAt this time, it would be premature to discuss any negotiations.\u201d <\/p>\n

Ottawa\u2019s advisers have also reached out to MST Development Corp., a Vancouver-based real estate company backed by three First Nations \u2013 the Musqueam, Squamish and Tsleil-Waututh \u2013 according to one of the sources. <\/p>\n

MST owns a $3-billion property portfolio. CEO David Negrin has attended two fundraisers for Mr. Carney over the past two years. MST did not respond to a request for comment. <\/p>\n

On Wednesday, Ministry of Transport spokesperson Marie-Justine Torres said the government is working on plans to bring private investment into airports \u201cin partnership with Indigenous groups.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThere are more important steps ahead, and details will be developed in the coming months working with the airport authorities,\u201d said Ms. Torres.<\/p>\n

Many Canadians support Carney\u2019s airport privatization plan, poll finds<\/a><\/p>\n

Canada\u2019s airports are run by non-profit companies that pay rent to the government and fund operations through a host of fees charged to users, including passengers, airlines, restaurants and shops.<\/p>\n

YVR spokesperson Stephen Smart said in an e-mail that \u201cYVR will continue to engage with the Government of Canada, as well as with Musqueam, given our unique relationship.\u201d <\/p>\n

At the Canada Investment Summit in September, Mr. Carney made signing operational contracts for airports a key part of his pitch to many of the world\u2019s largest asset managers. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe, as a government, will be able to get tens of billions of dollars of proceeds from this process,\u201d Mr. Carney said at the time.<\/p>\n

The Prime Minister also said Canada intends to draw on the experience of other countries throughout the process \u2013 and learn from the pension funds and others who already own airports.<\/p>\n

After Mr. Carney\u2019s announcement, Transport Minister Steven MacKinnon said the government would partially regulate airport fares and fees after privatization. He did not rule out costs rising for travellers.<\/p>\n

Analysis: What to watch as negotiations ramp up for Carney\u2019s airport privatization plans<\/a><\/p>\n

An executive at the International Air Transport Association told The Globe last month that major airlines oppose the plan<\/a>, warning it would drive up fees paid by the airlines, which would be forced to pass on the higher costs to travellers.<\/p>\n

On Wednesday, a report from the University of Calgary\u2019s economics department said the government needs to set the rules on airport operations before inviting offers from institutional investors.<\/p>\n

The country\u2019s four largest airports could fetch between $12-billion and $29-billion, according the report\u2019s author, economist Aidan Hollis. In the report, he said: \u201cThat range is not a fact about airports, it is a bet on how they will be regulated.\u201d <\/p>\n

Putting passenger-friendly regulations in place \u201cwill determine both what users pay and what the airports are worth,\u201d Dr. Hollis said. <\/p>\n

Canada\u2019s airport authorities have long pushed for the federal government to reinvest the rent it receives from airports. Since the 1990s, the airports have paid a cumulative total of $8.4-billion in rent to the government, including $556-million in 2025, while spending more than $30-billion in infrastructure and improvements. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Open this photo in gallery: Indigenous investors are expected to take a minority stake of up to 20…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":924876,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[45,49,48,1008],"class_list":["post-924875","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-business","tag-business","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-pleasemod"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/924875","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=924875"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/924875\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/924876"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=924875"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=924875"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=924875"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}