The Norweigan government is not willing to provide more money to SAS, but it is willing to convert loans of NOK 1.5 billion into shares under certain terms.
“The government has decided that under certain conditions, we can accept to let all or part of the outstanding debt be converted into shares if necessary,” Minister of Trade and Industry Jan Christian Vestre (AP) said at a press conference on Tuesday morning.
“This presupposes that the restructuring plan is good enough and that all actors contribute to finding solutions,” he noted.
Thus, the Norwegian state can indirectly end up becoming a shareholder in SAS, Vestre explained.
“I would like to emphasize that the Norwegian government’s position is that we do not envisage becoming a long-term owner.”
Dialogue
He said there has been a good dialogue between the state, advisers, and SAS and pointed out that the state has been concerned with being a constructive and responsible creditor.
Crisis-stricken SAS is in the process of a comprehensive restructuring plan in which major cost cuts have been announced to keep the company afloat.
Norway sold its share in SAS in 2018, but during the pandemic, the Norwegian state provided NOK 1.5 billion in crisis assistance to the company through loan guarantees.
On Wednesday, the company could be hit by a comprehensive pilot strike if the mediation between the pilot associations and SAS fails.
Source: © NTB Scanpix / #Norway Today / #NorwayTodayNews
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