Provisional liquidators of South African regional carrier SA Express are attempting to find a buyer for the airline, claiming that they are engaging with six or seven parties which have expressed interest in the company. Their effort follows court approval on 15 June to extend their powers, in order to explore the possibility of attracting investment in the airline. Final liquidation orders for SA Express – which would have simply resulted in the dismantling of the company and disposal of its assets – have been postponed until 6 September, giving the provisional liquidators a three-month window to secure a deal. One of the liquidators, Aviwe Ntandazo Ndyamara, disclosed the situation as he belatedly testified to the parliamentary standing committee on public accounts on 17 June. The liquidators had previously been due to appear before the committee but failed to show – apparently due to a communication mix-up – and the committee chair, Mkhuleko Hlengwa, had threatened to subpoena them. Ndyamara stressed that there had been “no intention” to undermine the process and that the liquidators had wanted to provide a proper update on the SA Express situation. He told the committee that interest in the airline had emerged from several potential investors. “There are six interested – in fact, from this morning, there’s about seven interested parties that we’re currently engaging,” said Ndyamara. “The next route for us is to proceed with an investment or a sales process – a transparent process where we either attract an investor or, alternatively, we pursue the disposal of the assets of the airline in order to satisfy creditors’ claims.” While a final liquidation order has been pushed back, Ndyamara pointed out that the airline holds two licences which are scheduled to expire on 31 July. It also has an aviation security training organisation approval which expires on 31 December. He says the liquidators aim to engage a sale or investment process before the expirations. The situation is further complicated by SA Express aircraft and engine lease agreements amounting to R22.5 million per month, plus monthly office and hangar leases of R2.2 million. Ndyamara says that these lease agreements are “onerous” and “immediate consideration” must be given to their termination. But he adds that this could have an impact on the licences. “This is critical for us,” he says. SA Express was placed under business rescue proceedings on 6 February and then into provisional liquidation on 28 April, with Ndyamara and other provisional liquidators appointed on 13 May. Ndyamara says the team’s priority was to reduce the costly R1.8 billion ($104 million) security bond put in place to protect the company’s assets. This involved carrying out an independent market assessment, which evaluated the assets at R103-120 million and reduced the bond to R113 million. SA Express had around R800,000 in cash reserves in its bank accounts, which was ring-fenced. Ndyamara says that, at the time of the provision liquidation order on 28 April, employee salaries for March and April were still outstanding. Employee contracts were immediately suspended as a result of the order. Outstanding remuneration, says Ndyamara, will be dealt with as claims against the company. While employees have special preference under insolvency law, however, they will only be paid after secured creditors’ claims have been settled. “At this stage it is unclear if there will be residue for payment of the employee claims,” says Ndyamara. Chair Mkhuleko Hlengwa says that, following the briefing on SA Express and the previous update on South African Airways’ business rescue, the committee members have resolved to schedule hearings with former boards of directors of state-owned entities. He says the briefing suggest that the collapse of SAA and SA Express might have occurred, in part, as the result of “lack of governance”. “Questions were raised about the role played by the former boards of directors in ensuring proper governance and effective consequence management at state-owned companies,” he adds. Committee members also plan a hearing with the government’s department of public enterprises to “ascertain the loopholes” which, Hlengwa says, have contributed to “failure of effective oversight” of these firms. “[The committee] is also concerned with the movement of senior executives from one entity to another under the department’s watch and wants the department to justify these recruitment processes,” he adds. Representatives of South Africa’s treasury and anti-corruption law-enforcement agencies will similarly be invited to brief the committee, as part of continuing probes into alleged cases of financial mismanagement.

Source: Cirium

Hong Kong Airlines hopes that the city's government can also provide it with backing amid the coronavirus pandemic after extending HK$27.3 billion ($3.52 billion) in support to flag carrier Cathay Pacific. In a statement originally shared with local newspaper the South China Morning Post, the HNA Group carrier notes that it has "been contributing to the passenger and cargo throughput at HKIA since 2006" and adds: "We hope that the government will consider their recent airline bailout plan in conjunction with support for other Hong Kong-based carriers, who also help to maintain Hong Kong's status as an aviation hub." The carrier declares itself "committed to serving Hong Kong" and "always open to strong strategic investors to secure our long-term development". In its 18 June report, the South China Morning Post, citing anonymous sources, said that the Hainan government working committee managing HNA's liquidity had authorised several Chinese state-owned banks to provide the carrier with fresh capital to the tune of CNY2 billion ($282 million). Cirium could not independently verify this. The newspaper's sources added that the financial support spares the Hong Kong government from bailing out another airline for now. Hong Kong Airlines would not comment further on what a potential bailout from the Hong Kong government might look like, saying that as a private company it "does not comment on our financial activities publicly nor engage in market speculations".

Source: Cirium

South Africa’s government has expressed doubts as to whether the long-awaited business rescue plan for South African Airways will meet its expectations for creating a viable and sustainable national carrier. Publication of the plan has also drawn condemnation from the opposition Democratic Alliance party, which says the strategy relies on a R32.65 billion ($1.9 billion) bailout from the government. The government’s department of public enterprises points out that the rescue practitioners, who have overseen SAA’s management since early December last year, have been granted a “substantial” period of time and “significant” resources to restructure the airline. “We will assess the plan which, we are concerned, might have not been adequately accomplished,” it states. But the Democratic Alliance has dismissed the bailout as “ridiculous” and will urge finance minister Tito Mboweni to oppose it. It says the cash required over the next three years includes R16.4 billion for lenders, another R2.2 billion for personnel retrenchment, creditor payments of R2.3 billion, and R3.2 billion to address ticket claims. Mango Airlines, maintenance division SAA Technical, and catering operation Air Chefs account for another R2.1 billion. SAA trading losses will add a further R6.4 billion. The Democratic Alliance says it also plans to write to the competition regulator to request an investigation into the proposed bailout. “We are of the view that it violates the Competition Act, as the airline will get an unfair competitive advantage over the other South African airlines,” it adds. “Of the limited options left for SAA, another bailout must not be on the list.” It insists that liquidation of the carrier is the “only realistic option” rather than pouring further public funding into a “bankrupt black hole” that has “not contributed anything to our economy for 10 years”.

Source: Cirium