MUMBAI, April 5 (Xinhua) -- Lenders to India's beleaguered airline -- Jet Airways would invite bids for their stake on Saturday till April 9, a release issued by the State Bank of India on behalf of 26 lenders said, late Thursday.
The lenders would also explore other options if the stake sale process does not result in an acceptable outcome, the release said.
The struggling airline, saddled with a debt of over one billion U.S. dollars, prior to the debt restructuring proposal by the lenders, is currently operating 26 aircraft down from its fleet of 119 aircraft.
The unavailability of aircraft following the monetary crunch has also forced the airline to cancel flights and delay salaries to its staff including pilots, along with suppliers and lessors.
Under the debt resolution proposed by the lenders and approved by the airline in March, the lenders have taken a majority stake in the airline and were set to infuse 217 million U.S. dollars. As part of the deal, the then existing promoter Naresh Goyal's stake along with his wife was to be bought down to 25 percent from 51 percent earlier.
However, after the late Thursday meeting, the State Bank of India released 21.7 million U.S. dollars as an emergency fund as there was no consensus among bankers to release the committed amount of 217 million U.S. dollars as per resolution plan.
Meanwhile, following India's apex court striking down the country's Central Bank circular on implementing a restructuring scheme earlier this week, the lenders too await fresh guidelines to address the Jet Airways case.
On Thursday, the Central Bank -- Reserve Bank of India, said it will take necessary steps, including issuance of a revised circular for expeditious and effective resolution of stressed assets.
