Air India seeking US$1.5 billion from owners Tata, Singapore Airlines: sources

[NEW DELHI] Air India is seeking about US$1.5 billion in fresh equity from its owners Tata Sons and Singapore Airlines (SIA), months after the second-largest Indian airline posted a record annual loss, two people familiar with the matter told Reuters.

It would be one of Air India’s largest publicly reported requests for shareholder funding since Tata took control of the former state-owned carrier in 2022.

It highlights the challenges facing the airline as it undergoes a multi-billion-dollar revamp, including the refurbishment of its existing fleet.

The carrier and its budget unit Air India Express posted combined losses of US$2.33 billion in the fiscal year ended March, more than double the prior year’s losses. The losses have also weighed on Singapore Airlines’ profits.

“Air India wants the funds immediately, though the infusion is likely to happen in tranches. Singapore Airlines would need to contribute its share of the proposed infusion for the investment to go through,” one of the sources said.

It is seeking the funding in the form of fresh equity, the two people said. Discussions are ongoing and no decision has been taken on the request, they added, declining to be named as they were not authorised to discuss the matter publicly.

Air India and Tata Sons did not respond to Reuters requests for comment.

SIA, which owns around 25 per cent of Air India, said that it was working closely with Tata Sons to support the Indian carrier’s transformation programme, but declined to comment on the airline’s finances.

Air India has also been hit by Pakistan’s airspace ban on Indian carriers, disruptions to its international network from the US-Israeli war with Iran and the fallout from a deadly crash last year that killed 260 people.

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Its funding request comes as Tata Sons chair N Chandrasekaran prepares to step down in February following months of disagreements with the group’s controlling charitable trust, partly over Air India’s losses.

Chandrasekaran has said that Air India’s turnaround could take up to a decade, citing persistent supply-chain disruptions and the need to overhaul the airline’s legacy systems, culture and fleet.

Air India has sought to defer deliveries of hundreds of jets on order from Airbus and Boeing as Tata presses the carrier to cut costs and reduce record losses, Reuters reported earlier this year.

“Air India is expected to continue requiring capital infusions in the coming years,” one of the sources added. REUTERS