Fusiones y Adquisiciones

💸 Volotea's negative working capital worsened to -€240.18 million in 2023, a deterioration of €105 million from -€135.18 million in 2022. The airline's liquidity ratio also declined to 0.43, with current assets at €184.6 million against current liabilities of €424.8 million. On November 12, Volotea delayed a €36.2 million payment to SEPI and banks for a state bailout of €200 million and an ICO-backed loan of €150 million. The airline reported a net worth hole of €423 million in 2023, up from €316 million in 2022 and €159.9 million in 2021, marking its fifth consecutive year of losses, totaling €97.5 million for 2023.

🚀 IAG’s venture with Air Europa cost €241 million, with €125 million paid as compensation to the Hidalgo family for not acquiring their company. IAG spent €100 million to purchase 20% of Air Europa and another €16 million to maintain its stake amid a capital increase. Despite not recovering €125 million, IAG's CEO Luis Gallego sees the 20% stake as a positive financial investment, suggesting its current value is 30% higher than at acquisition.

✈ Air Tanzania, with a fleet of three Dreamliners, four A220s, and two 737Max planes, has been banned from European airspace due to insufficiently reliable operational procedures as per the EU's Aviation Safety Agency (EASA). The airline was added to a list of approximately 130 airlines restricted from the continent, following the recent removal of Pakistan International Airlines from the same list. The decision was made on Friday 13, in response to Tanzania's request to initiate flights to Europe. European technicians are set to visit Tanzania to conduct on-site checks. Air Tanzania's spokesperson, Gerson Msigwa, has expressed ongoing discussions for slots and necessary licenses. The ban was unanimously agreed upon by the safety expert committee.

✈ Lufthansa's acquisition of Ita, the new Alitalia, led to route concessions due to EU market dominance concerns. Easyjet capitalizes most, dedicating eight aircraft to new slots. Vueling also benefits; starting April, it connects Florence with Brussels Zaventem on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays. Air France gains, while Brussels Airlines, part of the Lufthansa Group, cannot take over vacated routes. Ryanair sticks to organic growth, focusing on Orio al Serio, Malpensa, and Bologna.

🏦 MHG Continental Holdings, part of Thai group Minor International, offers €6.37 per share to take the remaining 4.135% of Minor Hotels Europe & Americas (formerly NH Hotel Group) off the Spanish stock exchanges of Madrid, Barcelona, Bilbao, and Valencia. The buyout targets the small float of 18.017.448 shares, as MHEA has 55,529 rooms across 352 hotels. An extraordinary shareholders' meeting is called for January 20, 2025, to approve the delisting. MHG already holds 95.865% of MHEA capital. The CNMV must authorize the offer.

🚀 Boeing employees ended their strike a month ago, returning to facilities in Washington and California. However, Boeing began layoffs in parallel, cutting 17,000 positions. Recently, about 400 workers in Renton and over 500 in California received severance packages. CEO Kelly Ortberg stated the layoffs are due to past overstaffing, not the strike. Laid-off workers will receive two additional months of salary, severance, job retraining, and three months of healthcare post-departure. Boeing's financial situation remains dire, with a history of challenges since 2018.

📍 International Airlines Group (IAG) will attend Air Europa's capital increase, despite the European Commission's rejection of the merger deal. Meeting the deadline set by Globalia for December 13, IAG's board plans to invest €80 million to maintain their 20% share, which would otherwise dilute to 17.7% next year. This move comes after the Hidalgo family injected €65 million via Globalia to avoid legal dissolution. The increase values Air Europa at €500 million, the same as when IAG first invested in January 2023. This is aimed at restoring the airline's equity after a €499.9 million deficit in 2023 and avoiding bankruptcy.

✈️ FAA administrator Mike Whitaker visited Boeing's Renton, Washington facilities and discovered production of the high-demand 737Max had not resumed a month after a staff strike ended, despite Spirit in Wichita continuing fuselage production. Boeing, now limited to 38 planes per month, restarted production on Monday 9th at a slow pace, focusing on safety procedures. Spirit, Boeing's main client undergoing a buyback, received $350 million from Boeing to stay operational, while Boeing won't reach the 38 monthly aircraft cap due to internal quality checks.

🚀 Air India ordered 100 new aircraft on Monday, including 90 from the Airbus A320 family and 10 A350s, adding to their previous year's order of 470 planes (250 from Airbus). Competitor IndiGo also purchased 500 Airbus planes, totaling 850 Airbus aircraft ordered by Indian carriers. The A350s will be powered by Rolls Royce engines, while the single-aisle jets will use CFM Leap engines. Air India's strategy focuses on domestic growth, signaling an economic boom in India akin to China's two decades ago.

✈️ Asterion, Spain's largest infrastructure fund, has created a €100 million leasing platform for aircraft. Partnering with Sigrun Partners, led by former Iberia and Vueling executive Eduardo García Sansigre, Asterion initiated the venture by leasing two wide-body aircraft to Air Europa and Asiana Airlines. The company targets 5-10 aircraft in the initial phase post their summer 2023 acquisition of 49% stake in 2I Aeroporti, valued at €500 million. Similar funds like Dunas Capital and Arcano have also engaged in the leasing business, indicating the sector's financial appeal.