Several foreign parties interested

Published: 6/13/2000

The announcement of the privatisation of the Hungarian state carrier Hemus Air has led to interest from a number of interested parties including according to reports, an unnamed Bulgarian entity and a combined approach from Dominican Republic-registered APA Air and Madrid-registered European Aviation Holdings. All are reported to have interest in buying parts of the airline or entering into joint ventures with the carrier. The Bulgarian Government has received letters from the foreign parties expressing their interest. The proposal from APA Air being that the carrier could become part of a Latin American and European airline group, with Hemus based in Sofia as the centre for the Balkans. Despite the interest in the airline, the ongoing problems with the Balkan Airlines are slowing the process of privatisation according to sources within the government. The suggestion has also emerged that long-haul routes given up by the other carrier, could be taken up by Hemus if government permission was granted, according to Dimitur Pavlov of Hemus Air. Although the take over of such routes would involve the acquisition of new aircraft funded by either a new investor or by the state through guarantees on loans. The primary concern of those involved is that the process of privatisation should not take too long and potentially spoil interest in the company, which on the face of its basic financial data appears to be in rude health with profits in 1998 and profits for the first three quarters of 1999.

Article ID: 1861