Malaysian airline boss may buy Virgin Atlantic - report

[Andrew K 0]

Really now?

 

 

 

" The chief executive of Malaysia's AirAsia is considering a possible takeover bid for airline Virgin Atlantic, the Sunday Times newspaper reported. Skip related content

 

Tony Fernandes, who runs Asia's largest budget carrier by fleet size, has renewed his interest in the UK airline after previously considering and deciding against a bid, the newspaper said in an unsourced report.

 

Any deal could be worth up to 1 billion pounds, it said. No one at Virgin or AirAsia could immediately be reached for comment.

 

Billionaire Richard Branson has a 51 percent stake in the airline he founded in 1984. Singapore Airlines paid 600 million pounds for a 49 percent stake in Virgin Atlantic in 2000.

 

The airline said earlier this month it had received several "lines of enquiry" about tie-ups with rivals after it hired Deutsche Bank to assess the aviation market.

 

It said the bank's review was expected to last for several months and did not name those interested in a possible tie-up.

 

Increased competition from low-cost airlines, weak demand and high fuel prices have combined to squeeze many carriers in recent years.

 

The low-margin industry has gone through a period of rapid consolidation and analysts believe larger carriers such as Virgin Atlantic need partners to stay ahead of the competition.

 

(Reporting by Peter Griffiths; Editing by Ron Askew) "

 

 

Source: Malaysian airline boss may buy Virgin Atlantic - report

[Mohd Suhaimi Fariz 2]

Not really...

 

AirAsia boss says no plan to buy Virgin

 

Fernandes denies discussions are taking place

 

LONDON: AirAsia Bhd group chief executive officer Datuk Seri Tony Fernandes denies there are any plan to buy a stake in British airline Virgin Atlantic as reported by the Sunday Times newspaper.

 

There are no discussions taking place, he told StarBiz from London yesterday.

 

Asked why there was such speculation, he replied: I have no idea.

 

The Sunday Times said in an unsourced report yesterday that Fernandes, who runs Asias largest budget carrier by fleet size, had renewed his interest in the UK airline after previously considering and deciding against a bid.

 

Any deal could be worth up to 1bil, the newspaper said.

 

British billionaire Richard Branson has a 51% stake in the airline he founded in 1984.

 

Singapore Airlines paid 600mil for a 49% stake in Virgin Atlantic in 2000.

 

Reuters reported that the UK airline said earlier this month it had received several lines of enquiry about tie-ups with rivals after it hired Deutsche Bank to assess the aviation market.

 

It said the banks review was expected to last for several months and did not name those interested in a possible tie-up.

 

Increased competition from lowcost airlines, weak demand and high fuel prices have combined to squeeze many carriers in recent years.

 

The low-margin industry has gone through a period of rapid consolidation and Reuters said analysts believed larger carriers such as Virgin Atlantic needed partners to stay ahead of the competition.

 

Source: The Star

Edited December 27, 2010 by Mohd Suhaimi Fariz

[Waiping 12]

I thought MH wanted to buy...

[Abdul Rahman Hussin 0]

I thought MH wanted to buy...

If they think they are good enough to compete.

[andy9736 0]

me too..

quite confused by the subject ..

thought is MAS interested to buy pun

[Mohd Suhaimi Fariz 2]

If they think they are good enough to compete.

 

Good enough as in?

 

Anyways MH would never go for VS. Can you imagine VS being controlled by SQ on one side and MH on the other? Unless it's SQ doing the selling! But you can dream, can't you?

[dean hizudy 0]

What i heard is MAS was considering to buy/takeover one of the Indian airlines...

[Ikman Ikreza 0]

If not mistaken, SQ have a portion 40% stake in Virgin Atlantic.

[flee 5]

Virgin Atlantic is 51% owned by the Virgin Group and 49% owned by Singapore Airlines. On 20 December 1999 Richard Branson signed an agreement to sell a 49% stake of Virgin Atlantic to Singapore Airlines to form a unique global partnership. The cost of the transaction to Singapore Airlines was £600.25 million, which included a capital injection of £49 million and valued Virgin Atlantic at a minimum of £1.225billion. The deal was finalised in early 2000.

 

Source: http://www.virgin-atlantic.com/en/gb/allaboutus/pressoffice/faq/sa.jsp

[suadrif 0]

What i heard is MAS was considering to buy/takeover one of the Indian airlines...

 

 

Wow, MH is getting rich IMO they should spend their money by upgrading the hardware on their B777, no announcement ever made to replace them soon. As for B747, they are due to retire anyway.

[Josh T 0]

They should upgrade the business class seats to flat beds. There's so much space between seats on the B772 that it's actually quite strange that they're still angled lie-flat.

[c.lee 0]

Anyways MH would never go for VS. Can you imagine VS being controlled by SQ on one side and MH on the other? Unless it's SQ doing the selling! But you can dream, can't you?

Well, SQ may sell VS stakes..

 

Singapore Air may sell Virgin holding

 

SINGAPORE Airlines' new chief executive may shed the group's 49 per cent stake in Richard Branson's Virgin Atlantic.

 

Goh Choon Phong, who takes over as chief executive today, may get offers for the last major remains of Singapore Airlines' global expansion strategy as he confronts rising competition in Asia. Virgin said in December it had received tie-up inquiries, and Singapore Airlines' outgoing CEO, Chew Choon Seng, called the investment ''underperforming'' two years ago and has said the airline would consider a sale.

 

In Asia, Mr Goh faces low-fare competition on long-haul routes from Jetstar and AirAsia X, as well as renewed efforts by Cathay Pacific and Korean Air Lines to lure away lucrative business-class travellers. And Middle Eastern carriers Emirates, Qatar Airways and Etihad Airways have ordered close to 300 planes since 2007 as they build hubs linking Europe and the Asia-Pacific region.

 

Advertisement: Story continues below Delta Air Lines and Middle Eastern airlines are among the carriers exploring a Virgin tie-up, Sky News reported in December, without saying where it got the information. Singapore Airlines' stake complicates a deal as local ownership rules limit non-European investors to minority stakes.

 

''Either Singapore Air sells or Branson loses effective control by selling part of his stake,'' said Andrew Miller, chief executive of CAPA Consulting, which advises airlines.

 

Singapore Airlines was ''very supportive of our business strategy, including the review by Deutsche Bank'', Greg Dawson, a Virgin spokesman, said.

 

Mr Chew, who spent almost four decades at Singapore Airlines, sold a leasing arm and spun off a ground-handling unit while CEO to focus on the carrier's flying business. He will take over as chairman of Singapore Exchange Ltd today.

 

Mr Chew's predecessor, Cheong Choong Kong, bought stakes in Virgin and Air New Zealand to expand overseas. The value of the Air NZ investment was written down in 2001, and the remaining holding sold three years later.

 

Competition is intensifying in the premium market, which accounts for 40 per cent of Singapore Airlines' sales. Hong Kong-based Cathay Pacific is working on a $HK1 billion ($A126 million) business-class upgrade to lure executive travellers.

 

Korean Air, which aims to get 50 per cent of passenger sales from premium classes by 2019, will receive its first five Airbus SAS A380s next year. And Emirates is building a fleet of 90 A380s.

 

BLOOMBERG

http://www.smh.com.au/business/singapore-air-may-sell-virgin-holding-20101231-19c36.html

Edited January 1, 2011 by c.lee