Aena. Credit: Shutterstock, Piotr Swat
Spanish airport operator, Aena, is in a legal battle over whether it must disclose detailed revenue figures from its airport parking operations.
The case has now reached Spain’s Supreme Court after Aena appealed a ruling requiring it to reveal the financial breakdown, La Información Económica reports.
The dispute began in 2022 when a citizen requested data on how much Aena earned annually from airport parking at each of its locations between 2019 and 2021 under Spain’s Transparency Law. Aena refused, arguing that the information was “confidential” and that revealing it “could harm the economic and commercial interests of the company,” according to FTN News.
Spain’s Transparency and Good Governance Council (CTBG) ruled in favour of public disclosure, arguing that the figures should be accessible under transparency laws. However, Aena challenged this decision, taking the case to the National Court. In June 2023, the court upheld the ruling, rejecting Aena’s claim that, as a publicly traded company, it should not be held to the same disclosure standards as state-funded entities, La Información Económica reports.
Determined to protect its financial information, Aena then escalated the case to the Supreme Court. On March 5, 2024, the court agreed to hear the appeal.
Aena: a multi-million-euro business
According to Aena’s latest financial report, the company earned €204 million from parking operations in 2024, marking a 13 per cent increase from the previous year. However, Aena does not publicly disclose how much of this revenue comes from each individual airport.
CEO Maurici Lucena has defended Aena’s position, stating that the company operates in a competitive market and should not be subjected to the same level of financial transparency as fully state-funded institutions. While partially state-owned, Aena is also a publicly traded entity.
If Aena loses the case, it could be required to disclose its airport parking revenue breakdown annually. If it wins, the ruling could reinforce the right of partially privatised companies to withhold financial details that could impact their competitive standing.
View all travel news.
