The Moldovan government of Pavel Filip has confirmed plans to privatize national carrier Air Moldova (MLD, Chisinau International) as part of a push to close a widening budget deficit.
"We've noted that Air Moldova's performance indicators have worsened considerably over the past three years," Minister of Economy Octavian Calmac told Publika TV. "Alongside [telecoms operator] Moldtelecom, the means of privatization has yet to be decided."
The state-owned airline has been undergoing restructuring for the past twelve months and recently registered a net profit of MDL75 million lei (USD3.7 million) for the first three quarters of this year against a net loss of MDL122 million for the same period last year.
However, in an interview in October, managing director Iulian Scorpan said that despite its economic progress, Air Moldova's future prospects are hampered by a lack of available capital needed to expand its fleet and route network
At present, Air Moldova operates one A319-100, two A320-200s, one A321-200 (wet-leased from Olympus Airways), one E190-100AR, and two EMB190-100LRs. Network-wise, it serves twenty-four destinations in Greece, Spain, Italy, Belgium, Romania, Cyprus, Russia, France, Austria, the United Kingdom, Portugal, Ireland, and Turkey.
