Sri Lankan to absorb national airline’s $510m debt
Colombo, March 6, 2024: Sri Lankan’s cabinet has approved a proposal to absorb Sri Lankan Airlines’ outstanding debt of 510 million U.S. dollars by the government, a minister said on Tuesday.
The Minister of Ports, Shipping and Aviation, Nimal Siripala de Silva said the cabinet approval was given to allocate funds for maintaining services of the national carrier for another six months.
The Sri Lankan government called for bids from interested parties for the divestiture of the state-owned national carrier.
De Silva said the deadline for submission of bids for Sri Lankan Airlines would be extended by 45 days.
It was reported that Sri Lankan Airlines’ total debt amounted to 1.2 billion U.S. dollars, and the government intended to retain 51 per cent of the airline’s shares.