Preferred bidder chosen for Prestwick Airport

The airport in Prestwick has been under public ownership since 2013

Prestwick Airport could be on the verge of being sold by the Scottish government.

Transport Secretary Michael Matheson has announced a preferred bidder has been chosen to buy the airport.

The bidder has not been named but BBC Scotland understands it is a European investor in transport infrastructure.

It is the second attempt to sell Prestwick after a previous bidder, believed to be the owner of Glasgow Airport, pulled out in November.

It is not expected that a deal would include repayment of more than £43m owed to the Scottish government.

• Fresh bid by government to sell Prestwick Airport

• Publicly-owned Prestwick Airport put up for sale

Opposition parties have said the money owed to the public purse must be repaid.

Mr Matheson said it had always been the intention of ministers to return the airport to private ownership.

He told MSPs the advertisement for bidders placed in November attracted "credible interests".

He added: "Significant progress has been made and I have agreed the selection of a preferred bidder.

"This allows the process to move to the next stage and potentially an early divestment of our shareholding."

Ryanair remains the only scheduled passenger carrier at Prestwick but the airport is also used for transatlantic freight and for fuel stops

Colin Smyth MSP, Scottish Labour's transport spokesman, said: "It is vital that any deal to sell Prestwick Airport must include a clear commitment from the buyer to retain and grow jobs at the airport.

"Any deal should also have a clear plan showing how the taxpayer will get back the tens of millions of pounds loaned to the airport from the public purse.

"We must not allow a cut-price sale for the sake of the SNP government washing its hands of the airport unless it gives the taxpayer value for money."

Scottish Conservative transport spokesman Graham Simpson said it was positive news but he hoped it was not another "false dawn".

"With restrictions set to continue for some time to come on the aviation sector, the need for SNP Ministers to conclude a successful sale is urgent," he said.

"Too much taxpayers money has been lost as a result of the SNP's mismanagement of Prestwick Airport. We must hear if those millions are going to be recovered as part of the sale process."

Liberal Democrat transport spokesperson Carole Ford said: "I hope that the new owners can rejuvenate the airport and ensure that it escapes its controversial reliance on the US military for custom."

The Scottish government took over the Ayrshire airport from New Zealand infrastructure firm Infratil in 2013 when it failed to find a commercial buyer and was planning to close Prestwick permanently.

Since then the airport has been kept going with Scottish government loans, having lost almost all its passenger routes, most of them with Ryanair.

By last March, Transport Scotland, as part of the Scottish government, had loaned Prestwick Airport £43.4m.

Growth deal funding

The most recent accounts, for the year to March 2020, state that the airport turned a £5.4m pre-tax profit.

While passenger traffic revenue was less than £800,000, revenue from refuelling mainly military aircraft rose in the year from £12m to £21m.

Around 300 people are employed at the airport.

One attraction for a new owner is that money has been earmarked to help its development, as part of the Ayrshire growth deal, funded jointly by the UK and Scottish governments and the three Ayrshire councils.

There are also plans that it could be a spaceport for conventional aircraft take-offs.