Unhappy with SpiceJet proposal on clearing dues, Airports Authority of India (AAI) wants the airline to encash its bank guarantees to make the payments.
SpiceJet was given time till August 31 by AAI to submit a payment plan. The airline owes ₹121 crore as principal amount and ₹80 crore as interest. It has been told to settle its current payment on a daily basis to continue utilising the airport services.
According to AAI sources aware of the discussions, the Authority is not happy with the plan submitted by the airline, “They have proposed to pay the dues over two years. This plan is way too long and it cannot be accepted.” The source said that AAI officials are discussing with SpiceJet to shorten the period. AAI is also willing to consider a plan similar to what GoAir has proposed. GoAir also has been put on cash and carry mode over unpaid dues but it has proposed to encash their bank guarantee to clear its dues. SpiceJet also has a bank guarantee of ₹180 crore, which can be used to settle the pending payments to AAI. “One of the options SpiceJet has is to encash its own bank guarantee and make the payment. The other option is AAI will themselves encash the bank guarantee. First option is better for the airline,” said the source.
A SpiceJet spokesperson, however, denied that it has asked for more time. “We continue to reduce liabilities on a daily basis,” the spokesperson said.
In the first quarter of FY21, SpiceJet reported its highest-ever quarterly loss of ₹807.07 crore in the March quarter, compared to a net profit of ₹56.29 crore in the year-ago period.
AAI isn’t the only authority to which SpiceJet has deferred payments. According to a recent report, the airline had deferred payments to lessors and lenders as well.
The AAI has 137 airports under its watch. Out of these, 102 posted a loss of ₹1,646.66 crore in FY18-19. Due to muted demand, and because of most of the services at airports, which are either underutilised or shut, the gap of losses for this fiscal may widen.