30.11.2023 - 03:04 UTC
Sixteen potential bidders have expressed interest in participating in the partial privatisation of SriLankan Airlines (UL, Colombo International), according to a report in the local weekly The Sunday Times.
Phase one of the Sri Lankan government's bid to divest a majority stake in the national carrier required potential bidders to submit a request for qualification (RFQ) closes shortly. The Colombo-based newspaper reported, citing government sources, that Etihad Airways, Emirates, and India's Adani Group had all submitted RFQs, while Tata Sons, widely rumoured to be interested in a stake, did not. The CEO of Tata Sons-owned Air India had previously stated that he had no interest in the airline.
ch-aviation had previously reported that Emirates and Adani were eyeing a shareholding in the Sri Lankan carrier. Emirates previously owned a 43.63% stake in SriLankan Airlines and managed the carrier's day-to-day operations but divested under acrimonious circumstances in 2010.
The Sri Lankan government's advisor on the partial privatisation, World Bank Group member the International Finance Corporation (IFC), is reportedly assisting in...
29.11.2023 - 03:25 UTC
The CEO of Air India (AI, Mumbai International) has called on the Indian government to continue carefully managing any additional capacity rights it allocates to foreign carriers, arguing that local airlines need the chance to grow first and become more effective competitors.
“I think the strategy is to contain traffic rights expansion so that local airlines have the opportunity to spin up and attain scale and become competitive," Campbell Wilson told the Hindustan Times, adding that traffic liberalisation can and should happen after this occurs.
"A balance that has to be struck, allowing the market to grow but also incubate your local market because that's fundamentally the most beneficial thing you can do for the economy," he said. "The idea is to support Indian aviation. I think it's the right thing to do for the development of Indian aviation, and also Indian business and international connectivity."
Multiple foreign operators are seeking new or additional traffic rights in and out of India. However, the Indian government has declined to grant them, being keen to shore up...
17.11.2023 - 17:04 UTC
The state of Serbia will acquire the stake in its flag carrier Air Serbia (JU, Belgrade) held by Etihad Airways (EY, Abu Dhabi International), the country’s finance minister, Sinisa Mali, revealed during a news conference, allowing it to take full ownership of the airline.
“From a company that was in bankruptcy, we turned it into a leader that now flies on four continents, in a large number of countries, and we have become an example of how, through a successful airline, you can further contribute to the economic development of your country,” Mali exclaimed. “All necessary paperwork will be completed [on November 13],” he added without giving further details about the transaction.
However, he described the move as “their business decision”. The state now intends to further develop Air Serbia, he said, and “next will be the procurement of large aircraft, the opening up of new destinations.”
The United Arab Emirates airline will quit its co-ownership by selling its remaining 18% share. It bought a 49% stake in loss-making flag carrier Jat...
17.11.2023 - 13:04 UTC
A long-running investigation by Indian financial crime agencies into alleged tax evasion by Middle Eastern airlines has recently focused on Qatar Airways (QR, Doha Hamad International) and resulted in a request for documents from the airline and searches of the Indian offices of several Middle Eastern carriers.
The Directorate General of GST Intelligence (DGGI), the Indian law enforcement agency responsible for tax evasion, led the office searches in October, which included searches of Qatar Airways' premises. Saying the focus on the Qatari airline was still in its "very initial stage," a DGGI spokesperson has also told Indian media outlets that the agency had uncovered incidents of tax evasion totalling INR57 billion rupees (USD685.1 million) involving over 6,000 fake instances of input tax credit claims between April 2020 and September. It is unclear whether the figures relate specifically to Qatar Airways or also include the other carriers under investigation. ch-aviation does not say that Qatar Airways or any other carrier has evaded taxes in India, only that allegations have been made and an investigation is underway.
...
