New airline for India and Nigeria clampdown
18th April 2012
Law firms acting for Cairn Energy will see Air India aircraft seized if they venture out to any jurisdiction where UK courts can place a seizure order on the same – which is a substantial part of its network. This action follows the ruling that the Indian government breached the 2014 UK-India bilateral investment treaty when tax officials seized Cairn’s 10% stake in its Indian power generation subsidiary. The Indian state now owes Cairn US$1.2bn in damages. It is clear that Indian state-owned assets across the globe are now being assessed and lined-up by law firms acting for Cairn Energy, and mobile assets such as aircraft and ships are, as always, the easiest to seize…..and they will be.
Meanwhile, Government support for THAI is coming – via Thailand Exim Bank.
The Export-Import Bank of Thailand (Thai Exim Bank) is setting out the parameters loans to provide liquidity for airlines “so they can retain employees”.
The proposal emphasises helping airlines retain staff by offering financial liquidity through loans, said Pisit Serewiwattana, Thai Exim Bank's president. Furthermore, the loan amounts will be linked to the cost of hiring personnel for “each” airline. This indicate that assistance will stretch beyond the flag carrier to other Thai-owned carriers/businesses. Notice: not Thai-based but Thai-owned airlines. Funding sources for these loans will be either from the government or funds raised by Thai Exim Bank, said Pisit, quoted in The Bangkok Post.
THAI Airlines has already confirmed that it only has reserves to carry it through to April 2021, so the approvals will have to move through quickly. Even then it remains to be seen if THAI can be saved, but it will be a lifeline for other domestic airlines.