The Hindu Business Line : Jet Airways to raise $800 m through FCCB, GDR issues

JET Airways plans to raise $800 million through a combination of Foreign Convertible Currency Bonds and Global Depository Receipts, the airline Chairman, Mr Naresh Goyal, has said.

"We plan to raise $500 million through FCCB and another $300 million through the GDR route. The monies raised will be used for funding the new equipment that the airline is to acquire," Mr Goyal told newspersons on the sidelines of an industry interaction with the French President, Mr Jacques Chirac.

The airline plans to acquire 20 wide-body aircraft including 10 Boeing aircraft. The Chairman, however, refused to specify the timing of the bond issues. "It will happen this year. However, we cannot say just yet whether it will be before the financial year or not," Mr Goyal said.

The airline has appointed five bankers including Citibank, UBS, Goldman Sachs and Credit Suisse for the FCCB and GDR issues. The stock will be traded on the Singapore, Luxembourg or London stock exchanges.

The airline has also applied to the Ministry of Civil Aviation and the Registrar of Companies seeking all clearances for the acquisition of Air Sahara.

"We do not foresee any problems in the deal being approved. It is the first time that such a deal is taking place here but around the world they happen all the time," Mr Goyal said.

Jet Airways acquired Air Sahara for $500 million last month. The deal, however, has to be cleared by the Government before it comes into effect.

It is also working to finalise an agreement with low-cost airline, Air Deccan, that could see the two airlines share passengers and technical services.

The airline has also written to the Government seeking an extension in the number of years that a foreign pilot can work here. "We have requested that foreign pilots be allowed to work here for 3-5 years," Mr Goyal said.

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