The European Commission will not be able to block the purchase of Grupo 1844 by Alsa, the Asturian operator that owns Gumidafe, a business unit that will serve as a lever to enter into tenders in 2027 for the most profitable lines so far in the hands of Salcai such as Maspalomas and Madrid Airport. Gran Canaria. In Las Palmas, Alsa is suffering an information blackout because it does not pay for advertising given the narrow margins of its current business on the islands and which has been in development since 2018 and is expected to materialize since January 2024. Only the media have echoed this news. digital natives.
In 2000, the CNMC asked that the passenger transport business be opened and a moratorium was given by the Gran Canaria Council when Juan José Cardona was Minister of Transportation to Salcai to organize his interests. This moratorium ends in 2026. Sources from the EC indicated this Wednesday to Maspalomas24H that the operation will be analyzed, taking into account that if communication is received from the EC regarding the restrictions directly linked to the realization of this concentration, "the geographical scope" has no impact as it is a "national" and "non-insular" operation.
"Although the island particularities of the Canary Islands could point to the existence of a Canary Islands market, there are factors that confirm the existence of a national market, although for transparency purposes the parties can also contribute quotas for the Canary Islands market, but that is a discretionary decision," a source from the European legal services in the community capital told Maspalomas24H. On the island of Gran Canaria there are tourist transport operators, as well, that "in the event of a hypothetical increase in prices, other companies that are dedicated to transport could enter the market without difficulty, and discipline the resulting entity," said the same. community source.
