Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd today ruled out any negative impact after a decision by Dutch group Schipol to give up a plan to acquire 30 percent of the local airport operator.

"It does not mean that with Schipol not on board, we are doomed," Rosman Abdullah, Malaysia Airports executive director for finance told reporters.

"Expertise can be acquired in many other ways."

Rosman said negotiations with Schipol were going well up until the Sept 11 terror attacks on the US in which passenger aircraft were crashed into buildings in New York and Washington.

"They did not want to take 30 percent. They wanted to take 15 percent first and option another 15 percent. But the government thought if it is just 15 percent it is not a strategic stake.

"Once you have 15 percent and you still want the rights as if you have 30 percent, naturally it is not good. I feel it will be detrimental to other shareholders. If the deal was to go through it will not do justice to the other 32,800 shareholders," he said.

Stake in two tranches

Rosman also said the move to hive off the Sepang Formula One circuit was the sole decision of Malaysia Airports. "It was never initiated by Schipol."

Malaysia Airports last August said the finance ministry signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Schiphol International BV which operates Armsterdam airport.

The MoU had paved the way for Malaysia Airports, which operates the country's airports including the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA), to take on a strategic foreign partner.

Schipol was to acquire 330 million shares, representing a 30 percent stake in Malaysia Airports, in two tranches.

Analysts have said a foreign partner would boost efforts to turn KLIA into a regional hub after being hit by the withdrawal of five airlines since it opened in June 1998.