Air Serbia (JU, Belgrade) has sent its creditors at Etihad Airways Partners I and Etihad Airways Partners II a joint proposal with revised loan amounts and repayment deadlines, and, based on the proposal, has commenced “intensive communication” with the Dutch-based special purpose vehicles, the airline said in a statement.
As previously reported, Air Serbia, which is 51% owned by the government of Serbia and 49% by Etihad Airways, notified EA Partners I and II on June 3 of a possible default under two debt obligation agreements. The two SPVs said in separate filings to the London Stock Exchange that the Serbian carrier had notified them that it may not be able to meet its obligations to the agreements signed, respectively, on September 15, 2015, and May 20, 2016.
In its statement this week, Air Serbia said that its new proposal had been sent “in good faith that a mutually acceptable solution can be reached through negotiations” and it stressed that “Air Serbia, in relation to the creditors as well as others such as banks, suppliers, and leasing companies, has to this day regularly settled all of its obligations.”
It added that it continued to benefit from the support of its shareholders during the ongoing crisis.
“The Serbian national carrier has strong support from all sides involved in the adjustment of its business and the further development of the company in these altered market conditions resulting from the covid-19 pandemic,” it said.
