AOT dismisses rumours it is buying THAI shares
Airports of Thailand (AOT) is rejecting rumours that it plans to secure shares of the national carrier Thai Airways International (THAI).
AOT president Nitinai Sirimatthakarn said on Monday (April 13) that related regulations oblige an airport operator to treat all airlines equally to prevent a conflict of interest.
Meanwhile, a source from the Finance Ministry, which is a major shareholder of THAI, said the ministry held a meeting with related state agencies on Monday to look for ways to solve the financial woes of the national carrier. The ministry has told the agencies to come up with plans within this month.
The source added that the meeting also discussed ideas of boosting the airline’s liquidity by Bt70 billion through the options of recapitalisation or issuing bonds.
Separately, Nitinai added that AOT has enough financial clout to fund the expansion of all six airports despite the sharp drop of passengers and flights due to the Covid-19 outbreak. He maintained that AOT will stick with its plan to spend Bt393 billion on expansion between 2017 and 2023.
AOT is expected to call for bids for the northern expansion of Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport this year.
