RwandAir says Qatar Airways closing in on acquiring stake
RwandAir expects Qatar Airways to finalise its purchase of a major stake in the central African country’s carrier as early as next month, as the Doha-based airline attempts to capitalise on one of the world’s fastest-growing markets. The partnership with Qatar Airways would boost Rwanda’s aviation sector and allow its state-owned carrier to expand its operations and fleet said its CE Yvonne Makolo, as US plane-maker Boeing projects that intra-African passenger traffic will more than quadruple in the next two decades. For the past five years, Qatar and Rwanda have been working on a deal — which has been delayed, partly, by the Covid-19 pandemic and by Qatar hosting the Fifa World Cup — to grant the Gulf nation’s airline, one of the world’s largest, a 49% stake of Rwanda’s flag carrier airline for an undisclosed sum. “It’s been going on for a while, we have been discussing it for almost five years. So, now, we’re really at the tail-end of it,” Makolo told the Financial Times. Senior executives close to the negotiations expect the “execution” of the agreement to happen as early as July. RwandAir already has access to Qatar Airways’ network thanks to a code-share agreement that also gives the Doha-based airline to access regional capitals such as Burundi’s Bujumbura. “We access over 70 points on their network, and they access a number of points, especially in central Africa, where they don’t have a presence”, Makolo said, adding that the deal would help RwandAir expand its fleet and routes and upskill its staff. RwandAir currently owned only three widebody aircraft used for its Brussels, London and Paris flights, she said. RwandAir was voted Africa’s 6th-best carrier by Skytrax last year, behind bigger ones such as Ethiopian Airlines, the continent’s largest, that flies to more than 130 destinations, and the embattled South African Airways, which entered into bankruptcy proceedings in 2020 after decades of government bailouts. Ethiopian Airlines has succeeded partly by partnering with other airlines through joint ventures and acquiring stakes as, unlike in other regions that have deregulated aviation, airlines operating in the continent often have to sign bilateral agreements to fly between two countries.<br/>
https://portal.staralliance.com/cms/news/hot-topics/2024-06-17/oneworld/rwandair-says-qatar-airways-closing-in-on-acquiring-stake
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RwandAir says Qatar Airways closing in on acquiring stake
RwandAir expects Qatar Airways to finalise its purchase of a major stake in the central African country’s carrier as early as next month, as the Doha-based airline attempts to capitalise on one of the world’s fastest-growing markets. The partnership with Qatar Airways would boost Rwanda’s aviation sector and allow its state-owned carrier to expand its operations and fleet said its CE Yvonne Makolo, as US plane-maker Boeing projects that intra-African passenger traffic will more than quadruple in the next two decades. For the past five years, Qatar and Rwanda have been working on a deal — which has been delayed, partly, by the Covid-19 pandemic and by Qatar hosting the Fifa World Cup — to grant the Gulf nation’s airline, one of the world’s largest, a 49% stake of Rwanda’s flag carrier airline for an undisclosed sum. “It’s been going on for a while, we have been discussing it for almost five years. So, now, we’re really at the tail-end of it,” Makolo told the Financial Times. Senior executives close to the negotiations expect the “execution” of the agreement to happen as early as July. RwandAir already has access to Qatar Airways’ network thanks to a code-share agreement that also gives the Doha-based airline to access regional capitals such as Burundi’s Bujumbura. “We access over 70 points on their network, and they access a number of points, especially in central Africa, where they don’t have a presence”, Makolo said, adding that the deal would help RwandAir expand its fleet and routes and upskill its staff. RwandAir currently owned only three widebody aircraft used for its Brussels, London and Paris flights, she said. RwandAir was voted Africa’s 6th-best carrier by Skytrax last year, behind bigger ones such as Ethiopian Airlines, the continent’s largest, that flies to more than 130 destinations, and the embattled South African Airways, which entered into bankruptcy proceedings in 2020 after decades of government bailouts. Ethiopian Airlines has succeeded partly by partnering with other airlines through joint ventures and acquiring stakes as, unlike in other regions that have deregulated aviation, airlines operating in the continent often have to sign bilateral agreements to fly between two countries.<br/>
