Carney seeks private operators for Canada’s four largest airports

TORONTO — Prime Minister Mark Carney announced Tuesday that Ottawa will seek private investment through long-term concessions to operate Canada’s four largest airports — Toronto Pearson, Montréal, Calgary and Vancouver — while the federal government keeps ownership of the underlying land and assets.

“We will unlock their true value, by bringing in new capital and expertise into their operations and growth,” Carney told the Canada Investment Summit. He said Canadian pension funds already invest in and manage airports abroad and that it is time to bring that expertise home to benefit Canadians, with capital raised through the concessions to be recycled into infrastructure, including regional airports.

The hubs now run under a not-for-profit model in which local airport authorities manage federally owned land on long-term leases. Budget 2025 and the spring economic statement had flagged interest in alternative structures; Carney’s summit keynote was the clearest step yet. Airports were not among the more than 160 projects in the summit deal book. Asset managers on the sidelines told reporters they would be interested; labour groups have opposed privatization, warning it would raise costs for travellers.

Airport concessions are an inflation story about who captures the gate fees: private capital may accelerate capacity and passenger experience, but the risk is that higher returns get priced into tickets, landing fees and the cost of moving people and goods through Canada’s gateways.