KENYA's Transport Principal Secretary, Esther Koimett, says the country is considering taking full ownership of its national carrier to effectively ward off competition from other state-owned airlines on the continent and from the Gulf.
The East African state owns 48.9 per cent of Kenya Airways Plc after it converted debt into equity in 2017. The agreement diluted major shareholder Air France-KLM's stake to 7.8 per cent and brought in a consortium of banks under the name KQ Lenders 2017 Ltd, with 38.1 per cent.
'But that does not mean that it needs to remain this way,' Ms Koimett told lawmakers in the capital, Nairobi. 'We can create a path that leads it to a 100 per cent ownership by the government.'
The main hurdle to that plan is outstanding loans, for which the carrier renegotiated repayment schedules, she told a parliamentary committee that's scrutinising a proposed joint venture between the airline and the state-owned airports operator to run the nation's biggest airport, according to Bloomberg.
Kenya Airports Authority managing director Jonny Andersen told the lawmakers that while the policy is welcome, the proposal needs some fine-tuning. The joint venture could help reverse loss of market share to competitors such as Ethiopian Airlines Group, he said.
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The East African state owns 48.9 per cent of Kenya Airways Plc after it converted debt into equity in 2017. The agreement diluted major shareholder Air France-KLM's stake to 7.8 per cent and brought in a consortium of banks under the name KQ Lenders 2017 Ltd, with 38.1 per cent.
'But that does not mean that it needs to remain this way,' Ms Koimett told lawmakers in the capital, Nairobi. 'We can create a path that leads it to a 100 per cent ownership by the government.'
The main hurdle to that plan is outstanding loans, for which the carrier renegotiated repayment schedules, she told a parliamentary committee that's scrutinising a proposed joint venture between the airline and the state-owned airports operator to run the nation's biggest airport, according to Bloomberg.
Kenya Airports Authority managing director Jonny Andersen told the lawmakers that while the policy is welcome, the proposal needs some fine-tuning. The joint venture could help reverse loss of market share to competitors such as Ethiopian Airlines Group, he said.
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