Govt to lose majority Thai Airways share in restructuring

Thailand’s Cabinet has approved a reduction in the government’s stake in financially troubled Thai Airways International to under 50% as part of a reorganisation plan to be submitted to bankruptcy court. THAI is carrying an estimated debt burden of almost 300b baht ($9.4b). It ran up losses of 12b baht ($374.3m) in 2019, 11.6b baht in 2018 and 2.11b baht in 2017. The Transport Ministry will submit a list of prospective business rehabilitation planners for PM Prayuth Chan-ocha to choose from, Saksayam announced at a press conference after the weekly Cabinet meeting. The planner will be responsible for drafting a plan to be submitted to the Central Bankruptcy Court within a year. The plan will also be submitted to US courts, Saksayam said, a standard practice for big multinational companies. The airline initially sought a 54b baht ($1.7b) bailout loan from the government after virtually ceasing operations due to the coronavirus crisis. “This is the time for Thai Airways to be x-rayed to see what mistakes they have made and correct them,” Saksayam said. “The prime minister helped the firm once in 2015. And if Thai Airways had strictly followed the plan, we should not be here today.”<br/>