The billion dollar rescue package from the German state for AUA mother Lufthansa in the corona crisis could be history faster than expected. “We were one of the first companies that was saved by the federal government. We also want to be one of the first companies to pay back the rescue funds – hopefully before the general election,” said CEO Carsten Spohr on Friday at the National Aviation Conference in Berlin.
The German government, which in addition to loans and silent participation became Lufthansa’s largest shareholder with the rescue operation, wants the state to withdraw “as soon as possible,” said German Transport Minister Andreas Scheuer (CSU). With the help, the airline must get back on the road to success as quickly as possible. “And the state has to get out of there,” emphasized the minister.
KfW loan already repaid
Lufthansa was in dire straits due to the collapse of passenger flights in the corona crisis and had to be supported with a financial framework of nine billion euros from Germany and the countries of its subsidiary airlines – such as Austria. Germany accounted for a total of 6.8 billion euros of the state rescue package for Lufthansa.
When the package was put together around a year ago, a repayment by 2023 was considered a likely scenario. However, since then Lufthansa has not had to make use of all available funds and has already been able to repay the KfW loan of over a billion euros, so that the group currently owes the state around one billion euros. In addition, there is the 20 percent share package that the state economic stabilization fund (WSF) bought for around 300 million euros. Lufthansa still owes 1.2 billion euros to Switzerland, Austria and Belgium.
The MDax group heralded the preparations for a capital increase this week, with which the aid could be paid. According to insiders, this should have a volume of around three billion euros.
As soon as the state’s silent participation has been repaid, according to Spohr possibly before the election on September 26, the WSF can sell the block of shares. Then the airline would also get rid of the EU’s requirements that it has to comply with in return for state aid: the ban on paying dividends to shareholders, or interest to bond owners or bonus payments to executives.
Scheuer added that the recovery of the aviation business in the coming months would have to be awaited to see how quickly that would be possible. “Lufthansa must not be influenced by the state forever,” he said.
Aviation is recovering
Last year, passenger air traffic worldwide and also at Lufthansa was almost completely on the ground for months. With the falling Covid infection rates and vaccination rates, business has been recovering strongly for several weeks, as travel restrictions in Europe can be lifted.
Lufthansa can currently carry 30 percent of passengers compared to the pre-crisis year 2019. For August 55 percent are expected, so that the annual average would be 40 percent. The prospects for aviation are being assessed better again on the stock exchange, so that airlines can again collect money from private investors.
The most important next step for Lufthansa to recover would be the full opening of the transatlantic routes, which made the most profit before the pandemic. Germany and all other EU countries will soon be allowing travelers from the USA vaccinated against Covid to re-enter. Conversely, however, Europeans cannot yet travel to the United States again.
Business travelers are absent
The US government wants to develop a plan in a working group with the EU. Aviation hopes that a decision will be reached in early July. “Of course we miss the business travelers and we especially miss the opening with the USA,” said Spohr. The federal government wants to work for it, as Scheuer explained. “We also need the other direction so that flights to the USA are possible again.” That should be achieved in the next few weeks.
At the conference, German Chancellor Angela Merkel urged caution when traveling in view of the spread of the Delta virus variant in Great Britain. “I ask for your understanding if we are a little cautious in some places,” said Merkel. “We don’t want to get in and out of the potatoes” with the travel restrictions, she added. (apa / reuters)
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