India's Civil Aviation Secretary, R N Choubey, has confirmed that government has not attracted any bids for a majority stake in Air India (AI, Delhi International) following the expiration of a May 31 deadline for submissions.
According to Reuters, Choubey said despite the poor response, government would not extend the deadline.
In its original call for EOIs in March, government offered up a 76% controlling stake in Air India alongside 100% of its Air India Express (IX, Delhi International) unit, and 50% of Air India SATS Airport Services (AISATS).
However, it conditioned the sale on prospective buyers assuming INR333 billion rupees (USD5.1 billion) worth of legacy Air India debt over and above a negotiated purchase price.
