Creditors accept THAI’s revised rehab plan. Most of Thai Airways International (THAI)’s creditors have accepted the revised rehabilitation plan, which the airline says will be a key step towards its recovery. The Nation

The national carrier reported to the Stock Exchange of Thailand on Thursday that creditors who hold 78.59 per cent of the total debt had accepted its plan in a meeting conducted online by the Official Receiver. The plan had been submitted to them on July 1.

The result will next be reviewed by the Central Bankruptcy Court in a hearing on September 14, THAI said.

Thanking the creditors for their confidence in the plan, THAI said this will help the airline lay its foundation for sustainable growth and profit-making abilities in the future.

Under the revised plan, THAI aims to borrow 12.5 billion baht over six years and another 12.5 billion baht in the shorter term, the airline's chief of finance Chai Iamsiri said.

Previously, THAI expected to face a cash deficit of 50 billion baht and planned to match that by borrowing 25 billion baht from state agencies and the remainder from private institutions.

Chai said the airline had discussed the revised plan with stockholders and the Finance Ministry supported it.

He added that there were two ways of finding funds, one was seeking additional funding via debt-to-equity deals with current creditors or getting funds from stockholders and new investors, while the second was to find new lenders.

He said that if the airline manages to get enough funding from existing sources, it will not need to seek new ones.

Thanks to the recovery of the aviation industry and high booking rates, THAI said it is confident this rehabilitation plan will be successful and achieved within the deadline.