WILLEMSTAD — If the government intends to structurally demand a dividend payment of 5 million guilders or more each year from the Curaçao Airport Holding (CAH), this will put pending projects from the holding at risk. CAH-director Maurice Adriaens stated this before the Amigoe.
CAH recently received a letter from the government which stated the government expects CAH to make a dividend payment of 5 million guilders for 2010. Expectations are that the government will request a similar dividend payment for 2011.
Adriaens: “The Board of Commissioners recently approved the annual report 2011. It’s now up to the government to decide.” If the government also wants a dividend payment of 5 million for 2011, this means CAH is to make a dividend payment of 10 million this year.
Adriaens stated that internal and external consultants of CAH had studied the company’s figures and their advice is that CAH can make a dividend payment of more than 1 million guilders. Nevertheless, the government insists on a higher amount.
Due to this, CAH already stopped the ‘airlift guarantee’ to several airline companies. This guarantee costs CAH approximately 2.5 million per year. Adriaens said if the government structurally demands such high dividend payments from CAH, other projects, such as ‘seawater air-condition’ and the airport city will be at risk.