New licences for Portugal’s airports

Portugal’s aviation regulator has issued ground-handling licences to SPdH, the company owned by Menzies Aviation, for services at Lisbon, Porto and Faro airports.

By Tereza Pedro, in News · 26 Oct 2026, 11:03 · 0 Comments

In a statement on 23 October, the National Civil Aviation Authority (ANAC) said it had completed its assessment of SPdH’s technical and regulatory qualifications. The licences cover baggage handling and runway operations at all three airports, as well as cargo and mail handling at Lisbon and Porto.

The decision does not mean that a new company is now taking over luggage services. SPdH, formerly known as Groundforce Portugal, was already the incumbent ground-handling provider at the three airports. The Portuguese Government said in May that SPdH’s existing licences had been extended until 25 October to keep airport operations stable while the tender and legal proceedings continued.

The Tender (launched in 2024) initially went down a different route. As per the ANAC published timeline, the Authority selected the Union South consortium (Clece and South Europe Ground Services) in January 2026. Following the subsequent lapse of the selected consortium, SPdH were notified to proceed with the qualification and licensing stages. The ANAC timeline records the issue of SPdH's licences in October.

The tender process had raised questions about whether airport services would change provider and how workers would be affected. In its May statement, the Government said ANA Aeroportos had estimated that a change of provider would require at least 12 months for the operational transition. The Government also noted that the process had been held up by litigation.

Menzies became SPdH’s sole shareholder in June, after buying TAP Air Portugal’s remaining 49.9% stake. In its announcement, Menzies said SPdH handles more than 100,000 aircraft turnarounds each year across Lisbon, Porto, Faro, Funchal and Porto Santo, and employs more than 3,500 people. These figures come from the company; the new licences announced by the ANAC apply to Lisbon, Porto and Faro.

Ground handling includes the work needed to prepare aircraft for departure and arrival, such as moving baggage and supporting operations on the runway. The ANAC said it will continue supervising SPdH’s compliance with the rules. Its statement does not announce immediate changes for passengers, but the licensing decision resolves an important stage in a tender that had left the future operator uncertain.