Ottawa will seek private operators for airports in Toronto, Vancouver, Calgary and Montreal while retaining federal ownership of the underlying land and assets.
“It’s not necessarily that they must be Canadian,” Carney told reporters.
“There will be a competition between the investors so that we ensure that we secure the best possible results for Canadians.”
Carney said Ottawa expects “tens of billions of dollars” from the concessions, which he said could run 35 or 50 years.
“Not really a privatization but selling concessions over 35 or 50 years to operators for the operation of airports,” he said.
Carney unveiled the plan at the Canada Investment Summit in Toronto, arguing private capital and expertise could improve airport operations without selling the underlying federal assets.
He touted CPP Investments’ experience managing airports abroad, saying it was time to bring that expertise “back home to directly benefit Canadians.”
However, Carney confirmed investors need not be Canadian, opening bidding to foreign investors subject to regulatory and national security reviews.
He also pointed to airport restaurants and stores as revenue generators, arguing competition would deliver the “best possible results for Canadians.”
The proposal reportedly sparked alarm inside Carney’s own caucus before it was announced.
CTV News reported Liberal MPs were hastily summoned to a private caucus call Monday to discuss the future of Canada’s airports, with staff barred from attending.
One Liberal MP told CTV several caucus members “voiced alarm” over opening the four airports to foreign investment, calling the plan a “fait accompli.”
Ottawa had previously signalled its intention to explore alternative airport ownership models in the 2025 federal budget and this spring’s economic statement.
Questions also remain over how the concessions would work alongside existing airport authority leases.
According to Blacklock’s Reporter, the leases begin expiring in 2052. Ottawa collects roughly $500 million annually in airport rents but has not explained how the new concessions would fit with existing agreements.
The government says it will develop the concessions in consultation with airport authorities and other stakeholders, including airlines and local governments.
A 2015 review recommended opening larger airports to institutional investors under a share-capital model with foreign ownership limits.
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre said his party will judge Carney’s plan on whether it lowers costs for Canadians.
“We want to know the details of this plan,” Poilievre told reporters.
“We want to see how it is going to save money for Canadians, because if it doesn’t save money, then why do it?”
Poilievre warned the arrangement should not become “sweetheart deals for corporate power brokers and Liberal insiders” while Canadians struggle with affordability.
“We’ll wait for the details,” he said. “We will judge it based on how we can save more money for Canadians.”
Juno News could not reach the MP for comment on Carney’s remarks about foreign investors by publication.