AirBaltic aircraft Airbus A220-300 and Air Horizont aircraft Boeing 737-4Q8 at Riga International Airport, Latvia July 21, 2022. REUTERS
VILNIUS, Sept 11 (Reuters) – Latvia’s airBaltic has rescheduled a meeting of bondholders that had been due to take place on Friday, the carrier said in an email to Reuters as it works to shore up its finances.
The airline, which is majority owned by the Latvian state, has said it is seeking financing from bondholdersas it races to avert the risk of default.
AirBaltic had asked bondholders to approve a plan on Friday to raise up to €257 million ($298 million) through new super-senior debt due in 2027. But the virtual meeting is now set to take place on September 15, it said without elaborating.
The carrier is a test case for the wider airline market where weaker operators that struggle to pass on higher costs, face the biggest pressure from soaring jet fuel prices caused by the Iran war.
The new bonds would take priority for repayment from collateral — which includes eight aircraft and seven engines — while notes due in 2029 would fall to third priority, which analysts said could be behind a yield spike this week.
($1 = 0.8613 euros)
Reporting by Andrius Sytas, editing by Terje Solsvik
