Ratan Tata Comes Forward As The Most Promising Buyer Of Air India As Bid Nears End

Ratan Tata likely to buy Air India in the ongoing bid to acquire 100 per cent stakes of the national carrier, scheduled to end on August 31. By Tanvi Jain

 

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A post shared by Air India Express (@officialairindiaexpress) on Jan 14, 2020 at 2:56am PST

Tata Group is likely to take control of national carrier Air India by the end of this year via government’s bidding process, which is nearing its end on August 31, and so far, only Tata Group has come forward as an interested bidder. 

The company’s spokesperson confirmed to the media saying that it is currently evaluating the proposal and will bid after due consideration and at the right time. “No plans to bring in a financial partner,” the spokesperson added.  

If all goes well, and Tata’s bid is deemed acceptable then the 90-day handover period will be completed between November and December end. Reports further suggest that the Tata Group is likely to close the deal with the final bid by the end of this month. 

 

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A post shared by Ratan Tata (@ratantata) on Feb 5, 2020 at 3:14am PST

Apart from Air India, its subsidiary Air India Express and its real estate assets will also be up for sale. Tata Group has already been in the aviation sector with stakes in AirAsia, and a joint venture in Vistara. 

Air India was actually founded by Tata and Sons’ JRD Tata in 1932 and was operated as Tata Airlines till 1946, post which it became a public limited company and started operating as Air India since then. However, after suffering huge losses in 2018, the government decided to put up 76 per cent of its stakes on sale, but it failed to bring any success. Later, in 2019, the government again announced its sale to private players, this time 100 per cent stakes by March 2020, but due to COVID-19, the deadline had to be extended till August 2020. 

 

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A post shared by Air India Express (@officialairindiaexpress) on Jun 27, 2019 at 5:05am PDT

Apart from Air India, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had also announced the sale of another state–run company – Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) — by March 2020, after both had slipped into heavy losses. 

The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic after severely affecting the aviation industry, made things even worse for Air India as it not only delayed the sale but also forced the company to fire many of its employees. 

Related: The Tata Group Joins Hands With Singapore Airlines To Bid For Air India