Ferrovial, the owner of airports operator BAA, is preparing to sell Belfast City airport.

The Spanish construction company is understood to have appointed KPMG to run an auction of the airport, named after Northern Irish football star George Best and valued at about £100m.

The process will kick off in the coming weeks and is expected to attract interest from a wide range of investors, including the infrastructure arms of Prudential and JP Morgan, as well as private-equity groups Bridgepoint, HG Capital, 3i and Galaxy, the French fund that specialises in infrastructure projects. Bridgepoint is the currentowner of Leeds Bradford airport, while HG Capital is the former owner of Belfast International airport.

Interest is also tipped to come from the construction firm Balfour Beatty, and Global Infrastructure Partners, a joint venture between GE Infrastructure and Credit Suisse, which bought London’s City airport in 2006.

Ferrovial’s move comes amid growing expectation that it will be forced to sell one or more of BAA’s airports by the Competition Commission. Last month’s interim report by the regulator said Ferrovial’s ownership of seven airports in the southeast of England and Scotland reduced competition.

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