The SAA electronic meeting – which will include creditors, employees and other affected parties voting on the proposed business rescue plan – will be held as planned at 11h00 today (June 25).
This follows the confirmation yesterday afternoon(June 24) by Louise Brugman, spokesperson for the national carrier’s business rescue practitioners – Siviwe Dongwana and Les Matuson – that Airlink had lost its urgent application to the Gauteng High Court for the provisional liquidation of SAA, the replacement of the current business rescue practitioners, and to stop creditors from voting on the proposed business rescue plan.
In its court application, Airlink declared that there were currently “no reasonable prospects” of rescuing SAA; and that the SAA board, at the time that the resolution was taken to put it into business rescue, could not have had reasonable grounds to believe that there were reasonable prospects of rescuing the airline.
With the vote still set to proceed, the Department of Public Enterprises (DPE) has urged creditors, employees and other stakeholders of SAA to vote in support of the business rescue plan of the airline.
The DPE maintains that this would result in a better return for these parties than a liquidation of the carrier. In addition, a DPE spokesperson noted that it was the only pathway for a rescue and restructuring of SAA.
“As the shareholder on behalf of government, the DPE believes the approval of the business rescue plan would help creditors and employees to be co-creators of a new airline and ensure a strong base is maintained for the growth of the local aviation industry,” the spokesperson added.
At the creditors’ meeting tomorrow, a minimum 75% majority vote will be required to carry the vote. Should creditors vote not to support the business rescue plan, SAA would face liquidation.
In support of its appeal, the DPE highlighted that a vote to finalise the business rescue process would be the most expeditious option for the national carrier to restructure its affairs, its business, debts and other liabilities, resulting in the emergence of a new viable, sustainable, competitive airline that provides integrated domestic, regional and international flight services.
The BRPs have encouraged all affected persons to provide further questions to the BRPs at plan@saabusinessrescue.co.za prior to the meeting to enable them to consider and address these during the meeting.
No bailout from Mboweni
Meanwhile, despite some expectations to the contrary, Minister of Finance, Tito Mboweni, made no mention of further funding for the troubled national carrier.
