Singapore carrier Tiger eyes rights issue

Singapore-based Tiger Airways plans to raise Sg$158.6 million (US$131 million) in a rights issue to fund its expansion including the purchase of aircraft. The budget carrier said in a statement that the funds would also be used to bolster its balance sheet and provide financial flexibility. The airline is recovering from losses in its Australian operations, which had been suspended for six weeks due to safety concerns and cost the company about Sg$2 million per week while flights were grounded. Australian regulators lifted the suspension and Tiger Airways Australia resumed its flights on August 12. Tiger Airways said in the statement late Thursday that it expects to raise Sg$155.2 million in net proceeds after deducting expenses of about Sg$3.4 million related to the rights issue exercise. It said shareholders Singapore Airlines (SIA) and Dahlia Investments, an indirect subsidiary of state investment firm Temasek Holdings, will subscribe to 90 percent of the issue. SIA and Dahlia collectively hold a 40.2 percent stake in Tiger but this is likely to increase after the rights issue. One analyst told Dow Jones Newswires that SIA may take a bigger role in driving strategy at Tiger Airways after the rights exercise. "Previously, SIA's approach towards Tiger... was to let it be independently managed, having learned from the history of failures of many low cost carriers set up and run by incumbent airlines," J.P.Morgan analyst Corrine Png was quoted as saying. "However, given SIA's recent decision to launch a 100 percent-owned medium-to-long-haul budget airline and Tiger Australia's issues, SIA could potentially take on a more active role in driving Tiger's strategies going forward," Png noted. SIA, one of the world's most profitable premium airlines, surprised the industry in May by announcing plans to launch within one year a new low-cost airline plying medium- and long-haul routes.