SA Express needed cash from the state in February to avoid default
South African Express faced a financial crisis in February when it was unable to repay R150m to two banks by February 24, requiring government intervention to reach an agreement. Public Enterprises Minister Lynne Brown told Parliament’s public enterprises committee meeting on Wednesday that the airline — which is supported by a state guarantee — continued to face profitability and liquidity problems. An amount of R58m was paid to the banks and a payment plan was agreed on in terms of which the airline would pay the balance in instalments until January 2018. If this agreement had not been reached, SA Express would have had to pay the full R150m within 30 days. Brown said in a briefing on the current state of operations of the six state-owned companies under her department, that SA Express continued to face problems satisfying the auditor-general that it could continue operating as a going concern. She said the department was close to finding a solution on how to amalgamate the state’...
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