SAA will revive plan to find strategic investor, says new CEO
South African Airways (SAA) will revive a plan to seek an equity partner that is able to provide cash and operational savings to help turn around the state airline, according to its new CEO. A strategic investor would ideally come from within the aviation industry, CEO Vuyani Jarana said in an interview at Bloomberg’s Johannesburg office on Monday. That would enable unprofitable SAA to share costs, improve customer service and gain a capital injection, he said. "You don’t just want a pure investor such as private equity," said Jarana. "With a strong equity partner that has operations elsewhere, you are able to leverage from each other’s capabilities." A successful search for a new investor would solve the most pressing challenge facing Jarana — that of putting SAA on a sure financial footing without need of a further government bail-out. It is also a revival of a plan raised by former finance minister Pravin Gordhan in his budget speech in February 2016, although the formation of a ...
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