16th Feb 2012 Thursday
Kingfisher Airlines' losses mounted in the third quarter, taking the total loss to $240 million this fiscal year, as the ailing Indian carrier was squeezed by high fuel costs, a weaker rupee and fierce competition.
Cash-strapped Kingfisher, controlled by liquor baron Vijay Mallya, has become a byword for the debt-laden Indian airline industry savaged by rising fuel bills, dwindling cash and a stark lack of financing options.
"The company has incurred substantial losses and its networth has been eroded," Kingfisher said in a statement.
"Steep depreciation of the Indian rupee coupled with consistently high crude oil prices has led to a challenging quarter for the Indian aviation industry," the company added.
The company is around a quarter-owned by banks and its top lender State Bank of India has refused to add to loans it considers non-performing.
Kingfisher is in talks with distressed-debt experts but there are no signs of a guardian angel equity injection that executives have long promised. An entry into the potentially lucrative oneworld alliance was postponed this month as it scrambles for capital.
Unpaid staff have left in droves, and scores of flights have been cancelled to cut costs. Turboprop maker ATR, a joint venture of EADS and Finmeccanica, cancelled 38 plane orders from Kingfisher in January because the airline hadn't paid for the planes.
Kingfisher Airlines' losses mounted in the third quarter, taking the total loss to $240 million this fiscal year, as the ailing Indian carrier was squeezed by high fuel costs, a weaker rupee and fierce competition.
Cash-strapped Kingfisher, controlled by liquor baron Vijay Mallya, has become a byword for the debt-laden Indian airline industry savaged by rising fuel bills, dwindling cash and a stark lack of financing options.
"The company has incurred substantial losses and its networth has been eroded," Kingfisher said in a statement.
"Steep depreciation of the Indian rupee coupled with consistently high crude oil prices has led to a challenging quarter for the Indian aviation industry," the company added.
The company is around a quarter-owned by banks and its top lender State Bank of India has refused to add to loans it considers non-performing.
Kingfisher is in talks with distressed-debt experts but there are no signs of a guardian angel equity injection that executives have long promised. An entry into the potentially lucrative oneworld alliance was postponed this month as it scrambles for capital.
Unpaid staff have left in droves, and scores of flights have been cancelled to cut costs. Turboprop maker ATR, a joint venture of EADS and Finmeccanica, cancelled 38 plane orders from Kingfisher in January because the airline hadn't paid for the planes.
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