Vietnam Airlines has recently kicked off the process of selectingstrategic partners, which will last for six months, according to theVietnam Investment Review (VIR).
President of Vietnam AirlinesPham Ngoc Minh said several foreign investors have expressed theirinterests in becoming the company’s strategic partners. According toMinh, investors would be classified based on their final tender offersin respect to the value and the volume of stake they would hold in theairline; the potential investors would include both airline businessesand financial organisations. “Our approach in finding strategicinvestors is that these investors need to accompany us in the long-hauland promote our aviation core values,” Minh told the VIR.
VIRquoted a source from the Ministry of Industry and Trade as saying thatdespite holding a maximum 20 percent stake, the strategic partners couldstill play an important role in governing the parent company VietnamAirlines in the post-equitised period. According to appraisals byVietnam Airlines’ consultant firm – the Bank for Investment andDevelopment of Vietnam Securities Company (BSC), the expansive air routenetwork Vietnam Airlines has developed over nearly two decades is anasset, and also the company’s greatest appeal to investors. Positionedmid-way to Northeast Asia, Southeast Asia, Europe, South Pacific andChina, Vietnam could be seen as a gateway to a range of regions.
By the end of 2013, the carrier operated an international networkconsisting of 52 routes to 29 destinations in 17 countries andterritories, and a local network of 39 routes to 21 destinations.Another significant advantage lies in the airline holding one of theworld’s youngest fleets. Its current fleet of 82 aircraft will be joinedby new state-of-the art A350-900s and B787-9s from next year which willhelp bolster its competitiveness while slashing operating costs.
Vietnam Airlines was the second airline in the world to use A350-900sthat can save up to 25 percent of fuel over most commercial jets. “Overthe last 20 years, we have witnessed the remarkable development ofVietnam Airlines, with its rapidly growing network and investment in amodern fleet of aircraft. As a member of SkyTeam, Vietnam Airlines ismaking its mark globally,” Tony Tyler, CEO of the International AirTransport Association (IATA), was quoted by VIR as saying at a Hanoiworkshop this August.
Experts assume that the attraction ofVietnam Airlines also lies in its key position in the domestic aviationmarket as by the end of 2013, the company held more than 50 percentpassenger transport market share, and 63.2 percent market share on localpassenger routes. “Despite facing fierce competition from low-costVietJet, Vietnam Airline’s position in local route passenger transportis unlikely to change in the near future as the company, apart fromacting as a major shareholder in budget carrier Jetstar Pacific,possesses complete logistics services that keep business highprofitability,” said an aviation expert.
Vietnam Airlines willlist based on chartered capital of 14,101 billion VND (671 million USD)after being equitised, equivalent to more than 1.41 billion shares witha par value of 10,000 VND per share. The state will maintain a 75percent stake with just 20 percent will be sold to strategic investors. Ameagre 49 million shares, equivalent to 3.465 percent, will be setaside for public auction, with the remainder offered as incentives forthe company’s employees and the members of its trade union.-VNA
President of Vietnam AirlinesPham Ngoc Minh said several foreign investors have expressed theirinterests in becoming the company’s strategic partners. According toMinh, investors would be classified based on their final tender offersin respect to the value and the volume of stake they would hold in theairline; the potential investors would include both airline businessesand financial organisations. “Our approach in finding strategicinvestors is that these investors need to accompany us in the long-hauland promote our aviation core values,” Minh told the VIR.
VIRquoted a source from the Ministry of Industry and Trade as saying thatdespite holding a maximum 20 percent stake, the strategic partners couldstill play an important role in governing the parent company VietnamAirlines in the post-equitised period. According to appraisals byVietnam Airlines’ consultant firm – the Bank for Investment andDevelopment of Vietnam Securities Company (BSC), the expansive air routenetwork Vietnam Airlines has developed over nearly two decades is anasset, and also the company’s greatest appeal to investors. Positionedmid-way to Northeast Asia, Southeast Asia, Europe, South Pacific andChina, Vietnam could be seen as a gateway to a range of regions.
By the end of 2013, the carrier operated an international networkconsisting of 52 routes to 29 destinations in 17 countries andterritories, and a local network of 39 routes to 21 destinations.Another significant advantage lies in the airline holding one of theworld’s youngest fleets. Its current fleet of 82 aircraft will be joinedby new state-of-the art A350-900s and B787-9s from next year which willhelp bolster its competitiveness while slashing operating costs.
Vietnam Airlines was the second airline in the world to use A350-900sthat can save up to 25 percent of fuel over most commercial jets. “Overthe last 20 years, we have witnessed the remarkable development ofVietnam Airlines, with its rapidly growing network and investment in amodern fleet of aircraft. As a member of SkyTeam, Vietnam Airlines ismaking its mark globally,” Tony Tyler, CEO of the International AirTransport Association (IATA), was quoted by VIR as saying at a Hanoiworkshop this August.
Experts assume that the attraction ofVietnam Airlines also lies in its key position in the domestic aviationmarket as by the end of 2013, the company held more than 50 percentpassenger transport market share, and 63.2 percent market share on localpassenger routes. “Despite facing fierce competition from low-costVietJet, Vietnam Airline’s position in local route passenger transportis unlikely to change in the near future as the company, apart fromacting as a major shareholder in budget carrier Jetstar Pacific,possesses complete logistics services that keep business highprofitability,” said an aviation expert.
Vietnam Airlines willlist based on chartered capital of 14,101 billion VND (671 million USD)after being equitised, equivalent to more than 1.41 billion shares witha par value of 10,000 VND per share. The state will maintain a 75percent stake with just 20 percent will be sold to strategic investors. Ameagre 49 million shares, equivalent to 3.465 percent, will be setaside for public auction, with the remainder offered as incentives forthe company’s employees and the members of its trade union.-VNA
