As Tunisia weathers a severe financial crisis, the government has agreed to dispose of its shareholdings in the capital of many companies, including Nouvelair (BJ, Monastir). According to a tender document, the final date for submitting offers for its stake in the airline is May 19 at 1700L (1600Z).
Tunis-based investment firm Al Karama Holding announced on April 15 the launch of “an international call for tenders with investment banks and consulting firms, to accompany it in a support mission” for the sale of 23.85% of the capital of the scheduled and charter carrier’s parent company Nouvelair Tunisie and 2.76% of the capital of groundhandler Nouvelair Handling.
All interested bidders can withdraw the terms of reference from Al Karama’s headquarters against a non-returnable payment of TND500 dinars (USD167), the statement said.
Tunisia acquired its shares in the airline by confiscating them from Belhassan Trabelsi, a son-in-law of former president Zine El Abidine Ben Ali who was deposed in the country’s 2011 uprising, a representative of Al Karama Holding told Reuters. Since the revolution, the holding company has been charged with disposing of property confiscated from the relatives of Ben Ali, who died in September 2019. Trabelsi fled the country after the revolution, but the state seized the shares along with real estate and other properties.
Tunisia’s cash-strapped government has made a number of proposals to the International Monetary Fund in order to qualify for more financial aid, including selling shareholdings in several companies and banks. An aid package would also require unpopular reforms such as subsidy cuts and privatisations of loss-making state-owned companies.
According to the ch-aviation Commercial Aviation Aircraft Data and ch-aviation Commercial Aviation Operator Capacity Data modules, Nouvelair currently operates a fleet of eleven A320-200s on a network of 31 scheduled routes within Tunisia and also to France, Belgium, Germany, and the United Kingdom.
