The process was earlier expected to begin on April 6
The bidding process for Jet Airways has been set back, and will now start on April 8, when banks open up expression of interests for suitors. The last day for submission of EoIs is April 10.
Earlier, the process was to open on April 6, with the last day of submission being April 8.
SBI Capital Markets has been mandated to oversee the process. The lenders are led by State Bank of India. Jet Airways has a debt of over Rs 8,000 crore.
A speedy completion of the process is crucial for the airline, which is down to operating 26 aircraft, from 119 earlier. It has now deferred salary for all its employees. Till date, the airline had deferred paying salaries to pilots, engineers and senior management.
Apart from Etihad Airways, which holds 24 percent stake in Jet Airways, Tata Sons, a group of private equity majors and the NIIF, India's sovereign wealth fund, are expected to be among the interested bidders.
Etihad's Senior Adviser Cramer Ball, who is also former CEO of Jet Airways, was in Mumbai last week to meet SBI officials. He is expected to fly down again on April 8 to continue negotiations.
The bidding signifies a change in the stance of lenders, who were earlier expected to transfer Rs 1,500 crore to the airline as an emergency funding. But instead, about Rs 150 crore has been given to the airline, sources told Moneycontrol.
EoI details
According to the EoI document that was published on Monday, the lenders will sell up to 75 percent stake in Jet Airways.
The whole process has been divided into two - the EoI stage, in which the expression of interests will be submitted and out these, the lenders will select the 'qualified bidders.'
The second stage is the bid stage, in which bids will be submitted and a successful one will be selected. The binding bids will have to be sent by April 30.
A strategic investor, who should have three years of experience in the industry, will need to have a net worth of at least Rs 1,000 crore, and would have at least another Rs 1,000 crore of funds. A financial investor, on the other hand, needs to have net worth of Rs 2,000 crore, and funds of Rs 1,000 crore.
If the bidder is a consortium, it should have not more than three members.
The guidelines don't require sovereign funds to submit an EoI, but they can directly go into the bid stage.
