Named special commission to accompany alienation from SATA Handling

Sfollowing an order from the Presidency of the Government (PSD/CDS-PP/PPM) published in Official Journal, António Gabriel Fraga Martins May, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Angra do Heroísmo Economy of Mercy, and Maria Teresa Pinheiro de Melo Borges Tiago, professor at the University of the Azores, are the other elements that make up the commission.

The task of the special committee is “to establish strict compliance with the principles and rules laid down in the law, as well as the strict transparency of the process” and to draw up the opinions and reports which the Regional Government considers necessary on matters relating to the process.

To assess and submit to the competent bodies and entities any complaints submitted to them and to draw up and publish a final report of their activities, are other functions of the committee that monitors the process of divestment of shares representing 100% of SATA Handling's capital, a company that provides groundhandling.

According to the order signed by the president of the Azorean Government, José Manuel Bolieiro, the members of the commission, “at the request of their own, do not receive any kind of remuneration”.

Logistic and administrative support for the commission’s operation is the responsibility of the Office of the Regional Secretary for Finance, Planning and Public Administration.

The Regional Government Council determined on 22 May that SATA Holding would initiate the procedure for the divestment of shares representing 100% of SATA Handling’s share capital.

The procedure “decided under and in compliance with the European Commission Decision C(2020) 9277 of 23 December 2025 and the European Commission Decision C(2020)3816 of 7 June 2022 determining the extension of the deadline for implementing the measures included in the SATA Restructuring Plan until 31 December 2026” notes.

On 22 May, the Government of the Azores approved the initiation of the procedure for the divestment of SATA Handling’s total share capital, stipulating that SATA Holding will trigger, “with the greatest speed, all preparatory, instrumental and necessary acts for its implementation, through a particular negotiation process”.

The Executive established a set of guidelines to the Board of Directors of the Company, namely “to ensure that the procedure is conducted in an open, transparent and non-discriminatory manner, with prior definition, in specifications to be submitted for approval by the Governing Council, of the essential conditions of disposal”.

“ It was also determined that the process would clearly safeguard the strategic interests of the Autonomous Region of the Azores, including the continuity of the provision of groundhandling services on all islands and the protection of workers’ rights, in accordance with the applicable legal framework and collective regulation instruments,” the executive said.

The Governing Council also defined that the procedure will be accompanied by an independent supervisor and that the regional secretariats with financial and sectoral supervision “will exercise powers of guidance and permanent monitoring”, with the SATA Board of Directors Holding ensure the conduct of the proceedings and submit the final disposal decision to the approval of the regional executive.