SriLankan Airlines to invite bids for stake sale soon

SriLankan Airlines to invite bids for stake sale soon

SriLankan Airlines is expected to invite bids for stake sale in the coming months, as the national carrier has reached breakeven and expects to be profitable next year.

While speaking on the sidelines of the Arabian Travel Market in Dubai on Thursday, Richard Nuttall, CEO, SriLankan Airlines said the decision will be taken by the State-owned Enterprise Restructuring Unit at the Ministry of Finance but “we do know that the government wants to do it as fast it can. We expect to be in months, not years.”

The cash-strapped Colombo government approved the airline's privatisation in November last year in order to raise cash. There were reports of India’s Tata Group showing interest in buying a stake in Sri Lanka’s national carrier.

“Privatisation of Air India took around four years but Sri Lanka would like to do it in a quarter of a time, if possible,” Nuttall added.

He said some firms have shown interest but “what is real and what is wishful thinking is difficult to know at the moment.”

Replying to a query about Tata Group’s interest, he said considering Sri Lanka’s location and the number of flights operated by SriLankan Airlines to India, “there is definitely a strategic benefit for airlines that