GoM to decide on winning bidder for Air India

Tata Group and SpiceJet’s Ajay Singh have submitted their bids for taking over the cash-strapped carrier.

October 01, 2021 02:29 pm | Updated 09:57 pm IST - NEW DELHI

Air India planes stand parked at IGI Airport in New Delhi, March, 2020

Air India planes stand parked at IGI Airport in New Delhi, March, 2020

A Group of Ministers (GoM) led by Union Home Minister Amit Shah will meet soon to take a decision on the winning bidder for Air India, a top government official said.

“Air India Specific Alternative Mechanism [AISAM] will meet soon to decide,” the official told The Hindu when asked about the outcome of the financial bids submitted by Tata Sons and SpiceJet's Ajay Singh last month.

AISAM is the name given to the GoM headed by Mr. Shah. It includes Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal and Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia.

The statement means that while a decision has been taken on who has bagged Air India by the Committee of Secretaries, it is yet to be approved by the GoM.

Earlier this month, Tata Sons and a grouping led by SpiceJet’s Ajay Singh placed their financial bids for Air India.

The government will divest its 100% stake in Air India, Air India Express and a 50% stake in ground handling company AISATS. The bids for the national carrier are being sought at enterprise value instead of equity value as the government had changed the bidding parameter for Air India.

As per the plan, 15 per cent of the total enterprise value will have to be paid upfront in cash to the government and the rest will be used to reduce the debt burden on the airline.

0 / 0
Sign in to unlock member-only benefits!
  • Access 10 free stories every month
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.