The federal government wants to settle the long-running dispute over Campinas’ Viracopos airport this year, but Ports and Airports Minister Tomé Franca says an agreement depends on the concessionaire’s willingness to negotiate.
The talks center on how much Aeroportos Brasil Viracopos, managed by Triunfo, must repay the government in connection with the airport’s cargo-handling charge known as “teca-teca.” Franca said he would do what he could to reach a solution, while stressing that both sides must agree.
The company sought a re-bidding of the concession in 2018, a process that would allow it to return the asset to the government. It argued that government non-payment under the contract entitled it to a major financial rebalancing. The government has said it made the required payments.
Viracopos cargo traffic grew during the pandemic. The concessionaire then changed course and sought to continue operating the airport as the parties explored a settlement through the Federal Court of Accounts’ Secex Consenso process. That effort ended without agreement in late 2024.
Arbitration is now being pursued after having been suspended during the TCU discussions. Separately, Aeroportos Brasil Viracopos is listed in the federal active-debt register over unpaid concession fees, and is seeking a settlement with the federal attorney general’s office, the AGU.