SIA raises US$1.5b from sale-and-leaseback deals

SINGAPORE: Singapore Airlines Ltd (SIA) said it had raised about S$2bil (US$1.5bil or RM6.15bil) through sale-and-leaseback deals for 11 of its planes to help bolster liquidity as it grapples with the pandemic-related plunge in travel.

The airline said it would continue to explore other ways to raise liquidity after reaching deals with four parties over seven Airbus SE A350-900s and four Boeing Co 787-10s.

Rivals such as Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd and Qantas Airways Ltd have done similar deals during the pandemic.

“The additional liquidity from these sale-and-leaseback transactions reinforces our ability to navigate the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic from a position of strength, ” SIA chief executive Goh Choon Phong said in a statement.

SIA said it had access to more than S$2.1bil of undrawn credit lines and an option to raise up to S$6.2bil in convertible bonds before its annual meeting in July 2021.

The airline lacks a domestic market and has been hit hard by the virtual halt to international passenger travel because of border controls and quarantine measures.

SIA reported a 99.6% decline in passenger numbers in April relative to the prior year. — Reuters