Norway views Norwegian Air debt as key obstacle to aid

Norwegian Air’s debts of more than $5b and a “confusing” ownership structure are the main obstacles to any extra state aid, Norway’s transport minister said after the government this week rejected a cash injection plea. The pioneer in low-cost transatlantic flights, which grew rapidly through borrowing to build up a huge fleet of aircraft, was already facing financial difficulties before the coronavirus crisis brought air travel to a standstill. Now the cash-strapped budget carrier, which is serving domestic routes only with just six of its 140 aircraft flying, has warned it could run out of funds in the first quarter of 2021 without state aid. “We have not set a principle that we can’t consider support for a company,” Transport Minister Knut Arild Hareide told a conference organised by the Norwegian Confederation of Trade Unions Thursday. “But for us it’s difficult when we know the company has reported net interest bearing debts of 48.5b crowns ($5.34b),” Hareide said of Norwegian.<br/>