FlyLAL sold to Swiss company

Jan 10, 2009
TBT Staff in cooperation with BNS

100 percent of the shares in the ailing airline were bought by SCH Swiss Capital Holdings. (Photo Courtesy of FlyLAL).

VILNIUS – The shareholders of Lithuania’s flagship airline, FlyLAL – Lithuanian Airlines, have signed an agreement to sell 100 percent of the company to SCH Swiss Capital Holdings.

The Baltic News Service reported that shareholders who paid 25.6 million litas (7.42 million euros) for the company a few years ago would now be forced to settle for a 2.5 million lita payment for the company.

The deal is expected to be closed by Jan. 23, and FlyLAL intends to cooperate with Vilnius Airport, to which it owes about 20 million litas, based on a short-term agreement by that date.

The Swiss investment fund is taking FlyLAL over as a strategic investor and the carrier will continue its development as European regional air company, a FlyLAL's statement quoted SCH Swiss Capital Holdings chairman and CEO Jan-Erik Jansson as saying.

The plan of company's reorganization and specific future activities would be worked out during the next several weeks, he added.

"The negotiations were launched late last year as the Swiss investment fund expressed its interest in the Lithuanianair company. The investors studied the situation on the aviation market and the outlook for FlyLAL's business. The agreement on the sale of shares has been signed today," Vytautas Kaikaris, FlyLAL-Lithuanian Airlines CEO, said in the statement.

In line with the agreement, SCH Swiss Capital Holdings will purchase all FlyLAL shares from four Lithuaniancompanies, i.e. 40.73 percent from ZIA Valda, 27.15 percent from Indeco: Investment and Development, 22.63 percent from Sanitex and 9.49 percent from VA REALS.

The Swiss company's investments into aviation business, as published on its website, include the aircraft leasing company Alpina Aircraft Leasing and the ground services provider Alpina Air Maintenance.

SCH Swiss Capital Holdings, which introduces itself as an industrial holding, was established in the Bahamasin 1977. In 2003 the headquarters of the company were moved to the UK, and in 2008 to Switzerland.

In December the shareholders of FlyLAL offered a 51 percent stake in the company to the state for a symbolic price of 1 litas and asked for state guarantees for a 30 million litas (EUR 8.7 mln) loan. However, the Transport Ministry refused to aid the carrier.

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