The company shares of the single management company were divided based on the airports' previous valuations. This method was used to establish the holding company, for which the Region, now under pressure following the Court of Auditors' investigation and the Carabinieri's investigations, was willing to pay €30 million. The goal: to nibble away at the 9.25% stake in the deal agreed upon by F2i Ligantia and the Chamber of Commerce of Cagliari and Oristano (CCIAA).

The case

The technical and financial process followed is essentially a review of the operation. One element stands out: when the Todde administration officially signed the preliminary agreement, the so-called Term Sheet, in March 2026, it was clear that this was a late acquisition. This has all the implications that this entails in many respects. First of all, the Region is the only future shareholder to contribute actual funds. The other two, F2i and the Chamber of Commerce, had already decided to make a contribution in kind in 2023. With one paying the other in shares. But, above all, the 9.25% stake subscribed by President Todde is calculated based on the airports' previous valuations. Those commissioned by the Chamber of Commerce in 2022 from Intesa San Paolo and in 2024 from PwC, a global consulting network.

The advisor

Why the Sardinian government accepted pre-packaged conditions is unknown. This is also because Milan-based Studio LCA, in the €170,000 consultancy requested by Todde and the councilors, was not convinced by the criteria used to price the Cagliari, Olbia, and Alghero airports. "In the absence of a financial component that would allow for an objective and verifiable basis for the estimate, the entire valuation (of the Sardinian airports) is based on subjective assumptions, exposing the final result to significant variability depending on the assumptions adopted," the Lombardy experts wrote.

According to the attached reports, Olbia airport is Sardinia's treasure trove: a value of €351.9 million, registered to the operator Geasar. That's two and a half times the price assigned to Cagliari airport, which stood at €138.6 million. Alghero's Sogeaal rounds out the shortlist, with a valuation of no more than €32.7 million. Who knows if the valuations have anything to do with "the existence of unclear aspects" that the Court of Auditors' prosecutor, Valeria Motzo, referred to in her closing statement in July, during the regional budget approval process. This was the trigger for the Finance Police raid on the Palazzo del Palazzo: documents on the merger were withdrawn, on the orders of the Court of Auditors.

Alessandra Carta

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