“AEGEAN” – Aegean Airlines S.A. made an investment of €25 million in Volotea SL, one of the leading low-cost airlines in Europe based in Barcelona, Spain.
Volotea began operations in 2012 and operates from 22 bases, mainly in France, Italy and Spain, serving over 450 routes, focusing mainly on seasonal, shorter routes and leisure markets, which were not previously served directly and where it offers new connections.
In 2023 it carried 10.3 million passengers with a fleet of 41 Airbus A320/A319 aircraft.
The bases in the markets of France, Italy and Spain represent about 90% of its total activity with the markets of Greece and Germany making up the remaining 10%.
The initial investment of €25 million is realized by the joint participation of AEGEAN with the existing shareholders of Volotea in a capital increase of up to €50 million through the issuance of a convertible financial instrument (loan) with the right to participate in the profits.
Subject to certain conditions, mainly related to Volotea’s financial performance in 2024, a second disbursement of the financial instrument in question may take place in the second quarter of 2025, amounting to up to €50 million, in which AEGEAN will also participate with an amount of €25 million
Therefore, the total capital increase may amount to up to €100 million, with AEGEAN’s participation amounting to €50 million. In the event that the initial participation of AEGEAN’s first disbursement is converted into shares, then its investment will be equivalent to a 13% stake in Volotea, while in the event that the second tranche is disbursed and later converted into shares, AEGEAN’s total stake in Volotea will rise to 21%.
At the same time, AEGEAN and Volotea signed a Memorandum of Cooperation to explore new cooperation opportunities in distribution as well as in other commercial areas, with the aim of more effectively exploiting the synergies between the two companies.
Specifically, the commercial cooperation will initially focus on the availability of one airline’s products from the other’s website, as well as on the further exploitation of the international network from/to the regional airports of Greece, such as Heraklion, Rhodes, Chania, to/from key European markets such as France, Italy and Spain, in order to offer more options to passengers with the most efficient use of the resources and investment of the two companies.
Finally, the two companies agreed to make every possible effort to cooperate in the areas of providing Maintenance services as well as Crew Training to cover part of Volotea’s needs from the AEGEAN Group.
The Chairman of the Board of Directors of AEGEAN, Mr. Eutychios Vassilakis said in this regard: “AEGEAN and Volotea have different business models and product philosophies but to a large extent they operate complementary and share the same customer-centric philosophy.
We invest in Volotea as we believe in the company’s strategy and growth prospects, but also aiming to strengthen the distribution and coverage of important markets (such as France, Italy and Spain) as well as the possibility of offering direct connections to the regional airports of Greece.
Mr. Carlos Muñoz and his team have done an excellent job in consolidating the company and its network and we are very happy to participate together with the existing shareholders in this investment by providing funds for the further development of the company.
We are also convinced that more synergies can be created in the future as the two teams work together and utilize their potential.”
The founder and CEO of Volotea, Mr. Carlos Muñoz, said: “Today is a very important day for Volotea as the capital increase marks an important financial milestone for us, which was achieved with the support of our shareholders and the investment of AEGEAN.
We have known and worked with AEGEAN and its team for many years now and share the same philosophy, values and vision for the European aviation industry. We are particularly happy about this new step and look forward to a successful collaboration.”
Basic facts about Volotea
Volotea was founded in 2011 by Carlos Muñoz and Lázaro Ros, who were also the founders of Vueling.
Volotea, in the last decade, has been one of the fastest growing airlines in Europe, gradually increasing every year the fleet, the destinations covered by its network and the capacity offered.
This year, the company celebrated the significant milestone of total passenger traffic of 60 million passengers across its network, cumulatively since inception.
Its route program covers a network of 110 airports while maintaining bases in 22 destinations in medium-sized European cities.
This year, Volotea operates almost 450 routes (more than half of the routes covered in exclusivity), offering approximately 12.5 -13.0 million seats (+12% to +16% more than in 2023), carrying approximately 80,000 flights.
The company operates with a fleet of 44 Airbus A319 and A320 aircraft, while employing around 2,100 employees.
Volotea was awarded receiving 4 stars in 2024 and recognized by Skytrax as the “Best Low-Cost Airline in Europe” in the World Airline Awards, global passenger satisfaction survey in 2023 and 2024.
The airline adds these accolades to its growing list of achievements, which includes consecutive accolades as ‘Europe’s Leading Low-Cost Airline’ at the World Travel Awards in 2021, 2022 and 2024.
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