Garuda will take off with new planes
Hot on the heels of the Merpati debacle comes good news. A rights issue in the first half of 2014 by Indonesian flag carrier Garuda Indonesia is in advanced stages of planning, reducing the government’s stake in the airline by more than 9 percent, the company’s vice president told Reuters on Tuesday.
“The Indonesian government owns 69.14 percent stake. After the rights issue, government ownership will be reduced to around 60 percent,” said Pujobroto, Garuda’s VP Corporate Communications.
Last October, the firm delayed its plan to raise $200 million via a rights issue due to unfavourable market conditions. Garuda will now issue new shares and has appointed Bahana Securities, Mandiri Sekuritas and Danareksa as joint underwriters after the State-Owned Enterprises Ministry approved the plan. Garuda is one of 142 state companies supervised by this ministry.
The same three brokerage firms were hired for Garuda’s IPO in early 2011. Mandiri Sekuritas, the brokerage unit of Bank Mandiri, is Garuda’s financial advisor.
Garuda is looking for sources to finance its various expansion plans.
Earlier, Garuda secured $200 million in loans from Bank Central Asia and other lenders. In October, it secured $1.7 billion in loans from the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China.
In 2012, Trans Airways, owned by Chairul Tanjung’s CT Corp., bought a 10.9 percent stake in the company.
Through its “Quantum Leap” program, the company intends to operate up to 194 planes by 2015. Garuda has announced that it will acquire 24 new planes this year, as well as opening 17 domestic and five international routes. The expanded fleet will be used by Garuda and low-cost subsidiary Citilink.
The airline spokesman said in October 2013 that it planned to add up to 250 aircraft by 2025 to effectively double its fleet and meet demand in one of the world’s fastest-growing aviation markets.
Garuda’s shares closed down 0.62 percent at 482 rupiah on Tuesday from 490 rupiah. The broader Jakarta stock exchange index was 4, down 0.78 percent.
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Garuda has 35 of these BA-CRJ-1000 on order for short-haul flights
More Good News for Frequent Fliers
Singapore Airlines subsidiary SilkAir has taken delivery of the first Boeing 737-800NG jets from an order pipeline of 54 737s to be delivered over the next seven years.
The order for 23 737-800s and 31 737-8 Maxs was made in 2012, when it was worth $4.9 billion at list prices. Eight 737s are scheduled for delivery in 2014.
The deliveries signal the Singaporean regional airline’s transition to an all-Boeing fleet, according to the manufacturer and SilkAir chief executive Leslie Thng. SilkAir presently operates approximately 24 Airbus aircraft.
The new 737 will enter service later this month, flying to existing destinations including in Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia. Follow-on 737 deliveries will fly aircraft to expanded destinations in Cambodia, Vietnam, India and the Philippines starting in March.
Singapore International Airlines runs the short-haul mid-price airline SilkAir, which runs flights from Singapore to Lombok, and owns 32.9% of budget carrier Tiger Airways. All parts of the Singapore Airlines group have used operating leases, including SilkAir, Singapore Airlines' regional subsidiary.
Garuda already has the 737-800NG
