In an effort to expand air traffic in Mexico and optimise the operation of the country’s many airports, the Mexican government decided to privatise a large number of airports
in 1998.

The Mexican government granted Grupo Aeroportuario del Sureste (ASUR) the right to operate and develop nine airports in south-eastern Mexico under a 50-year concession agreement, with an option to extend the concession for 50 more years.

The nine airports in the ASUR group are located in six different Mexican states whose populations to a great extent earn their living from tourism. These airports are in the cities of Cancún, Cozumel, Huatulco, Mérida, Minatitlán, Oaxaca, Tapachula, Veracruz and Villahermosa.

In the year 2004, the airport group as whole served approximately 14 million passengers, with 72% of total traffic passing through the Cancún Airport. Passenger traffic grew 14% with an additional 1.7 million passengers travelling through the ASUR airports.

Currently 15% of ASUR’s capital is held by Inversiones y Técnicas Aeroportuarias, S.A. de C.V. (ITA) which is co-owned by Fernando Chico Pardo and Copenhagen Airports. The remaining 85% is publicly traded, as ASUR is listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) and the Mexican Stock Exchange (Bolsa Mexicana de Valores).