Thailand’s Nok Air eyes acquisitions, fleet growth

Although it first has to finalise negotiations with its creditors, Nok Air (DD, Bangkok Don Mueang) is evaluating options to become a stronger carrier in the post-COVID era among which include growth through acquisitions and a fleet revamp. In an interview with the Bangkok Post, chief executive Wutthiphum Jurangkool said the low-cost carrier had already concluded negotiations with about half of its creditors ahead of a March 15, 2021, deadline to submit its restructuring plan to the Central Bankruptcy Court. The plan will have to be approved by creditors holding at least 50% of the airline’s liabilities before the court can greenlight it. Some matters remain outstanding in the talks, Wutthiphum said, including Nok Air’s future leasing commitments. As the talks continue, the airline has delayed the filing of its 2020 annual until the second quarter of 2021. “The company recognises the significance of the financial statements whose material information shall be prudent and correct. However, some material information that impacts the company’s financial statements is currently unavailable as a result of preparation for the rehabilitation plan,” Nok Air explained in a stock market filing. The delay prompted the Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) to suspend trading in Nok Air’s shares as of March 2. However, the airline is plotting a way forward with Wutthiphum saying it had approached two other large Thai carriers over a potential acquisition, guided by the notion that consolidation and expansion could be vital to long-term financial sustainability. While he would not name the carriers Nok Air had talked to, they are among the seven founders of the Airline Association of Thailand. Besides Nok Air, the club includes Bangkok Airways, Thai AirAsia, Thai AirAsia X, Thai Smile, Thai Lion Air, and Thai VietJetAir. Of these, Bangkok Airways is independently held, Thai Smile is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Thai Airways International, Thai VietJetAir is a VietJetAir subsidiary, and the others are members of either Lion Air Group or AirAsia Group. Wutthiphum said that while the timing was now right for low-cost acquisitions of other airlines, any such deal would have to bring clear benefits and economies of scale to Nok Air. The LCC itself is currently 13.3% owned by Thai Airways, although the flag carrier has identified its shares in the LCC as surplus under its own restructuring plan. The Jurangkool family controls around 75% of Nok Air’s shares. In addition, in late January 2021, Nok Air issued a wide-ranging Request For Proposals (RFP) for the dry-lease of turboprop, narrowbody, widebody, and freighter aircraft, with deliveries between 2021 and 2026. According to Cirium, which saw the RFP, the airline was scouting the market for up to nineteen B737-800s, four DHC-8-Q400s or ATR72-600s, two Boeing widebody aircraft, and a single B737-800 freighter. Nok Air’s current fleet comprises fourteen B737-800s and eight Dash 8-Q400s, with six B737-8s on order from Boeing (BOE, Chicago O’Hare).