Tag: banks

Ford Announces Goal to Donate 100 Million Masks

September 4, 2020 / WIL BALDWIN

– New Documentary Celebrates Workforce Response to Covid-19

https://youtu.be/lYHgV2u1T2Y

DEARBORN, Michigan, Sept. 4, 2020 – Following completion of its 50,000th ventilator to help clinicians treat COVID-19 patients, Ford is pivoting to target production of 100 million masks through 2021 for communities across the U.S. with limited access to personal protective equipment. The company, currently manufacturing 2.5 million medical-grade masks a week for its employees and at-risk communities, is growing the number of mask-making machines by mid- to late-October to increase production and deliver on its goal.

Ford is working with Ford Motor Company Fund, the company’s philanthropic arm, to identify donation recipients across the U.S. through a network of nonprofit and state and local partners. The company is focusing on military veterans, schools, food banks and African American communities, among others.

This announcement comes ahead of a new short documentary by award-winning director Peter Berg (“Friday Night Lights,” “Patriots Day,” “Lone Survivor”) titled “On the Line.” Premiering on YouTube at 2 p.m. EDT today, the documentary focuses on Ford’s Project Apollo, the internal codename for the company’s all-out effort to design and manufacture personal protective equipment, including powered air-purifying respirators, face shields, medical gowns for healthcare workers and first responders, plus ventilators for COVID-19 patients.

Berg’s deep dive into the story features members of Ford’s Project Apollo team – from the engineers who led the project to the UAW team members who volunteered to work at the height of the pandemic.

Last week, Ford Motor Company Fund shipped 10 million face masks to the National Urban League, American Red Cross, Disabled American Veterans and other local organizations to protect against COVID-19.

Ford, in partnership with the UAW, has produced more than 72 million pieces of personal protective equipment to meet the enormous demand. Altogether, this amounts to:

– More than 45 million face masks and 20 million face shields

– 50,000 patient ventilators

– More than 32,000 powered air-purifying respirators in collaboration with 3M

– 1.4 million washable isolation gown

Economic Stabilization Fund Approves Lufthansa Package

May 27, 2020 / WIL BALDWIN

Deutsche Lufthansa AG has been informed by the Economic Stabilization Fund (WSF) of the Federal Republic of Germany that the WSF has approved the stabilization package for the company. The Executive Board also supports the package.

The package provides for stabilization measures and loans of up to EUR 9 billion.

The WSF will make silent participations of up to 5.7 billion euros in total in the assets of Deutsche Lufthansa AG. Of this amount, approximately EUR 4.7 billion is classified as equity in accordance with the provisions of the German Commercial Code (HGB) and IFRS. In this amount, the silent participation is unlimited in time and can be terminated by the company on a quarterly basis in whole or in part. In accordance with the agreed concept, the remuneration on the silent participations is 4% for the years 2020 and 2021, and rises in the following years to 9.5% in 2027.

Furthermore, the WSF will subscribe to shares by way of a capital increase in order to build up a 20% stake in the share capital of Deutsche Lufthansa AG. The subscription price will be 2.56 Euro per share, so that the cash contribution will amount to about 300 million Euro. The WSF may also increase its stake to 25% plus one share in the event of a takeover of the company.

In addition, in the event of non-payment of remuneration by the Company, a further portion of the silent participation is to be convertible into a further shareholding of 5% of the share capital at the earliest from 2024 and 2026 respectively. The second conversion option, however, only applies to the extent that the WSF has not previously increased its shareholding in connection with the above-mentioned takeover case. Conversion should also be possible for dilution protection. Subject to the full repayment of the silent participations by the company and a minimum sale price of EUR 2.56 per share plus an annual interest of 12%, the WSF undertakes, however, to sell its shareholding in full at the market price by 31 December 2023.

Finally, the stabilization measures are supplemented by a syndicated credit facility of up to EUR 3 billion with the participation of KfW and private banks with a term of three years. This facility is still subject to the approval of relevant bodies.

The expected conditions relate in particular to the waiver of future dividend payments and restrictions on management remuneration. In addition, two seats on the Supervisory Board are to be filled in agreement with the German government, one of which is to become a member of the Audit Committee. Except in the event of a takeover, the WSF undertakes not to exercise its voting rights at the Annual General Meeting in connection with the usual resolutions of ordinary Annual General Meetings.

The stabilization package still requires the final approval of the Management Board and the Supervisory Board of the company. Both bodies will come together shortly to adopt resolutions on the stabilization package. The capital measures are subject to the approval of an extraordinary general meeting.

Finally, the stabilization package is subject to the approval of the European Commission and any competition-related conditions.

Emirates Plans to Cut About 30,000 Jobs Amid Virus Outbreak

May 18, 2020 / WIL BALDWIN

(Reuters) – Emirates Group is planning to cut about 30,000 jobs to reduce costs amid the coronavirus outbreak, which will bring down its number of employees by about 30% from more than 105,000 at the end of March.

The company is also considering speeding up the planned retirement of its A380 fleet, the report added, citing people familiar with the matter.

An Emirates spokeswoman said that no public announcement has been made yet by the company regarding “redundancies at the airline”, but that the company is conducting a review of “costs and resourcing against business projections”.

“Any such decision will be communicated in an appropriate fashion. Like any responsible business would do, our executive team has directed all departments to conduct a thorough review of costs and resourcing against business projections,” the spokeswoman said.

Emirates, one of the world’s biggest long-haul airlines, said earlier this month that it will raise debt to help itself through the coronavirus pandemic, and may have to take tougher measures as it faces the most difficult months in its history.

The state-owned airline, which suspended regular passenger flights in March due to the virus outbreak that has shattered global travel demand, had said that a recovery in travel was at least 18 months away.

It reported a 21% rise in profit for its financial year ending March 31, but said the pandemic had hit its fourth-quarter performance.

It said it would tap banks to raise debt in its first quarter to lessen the impact of the virus on cash flows.

(Reporting by Kanishka Singh in Bengaluru and Alexander Cornwell in Dubai; Editing by Catherine Evans and Jan Harvey)

FILE PHOTO: An Emirates Airbus A380 airliner lands at Nice international airport, France

Korean Air to Issue $817 Million in New Shares as Virus Strains Industry

May 14, 2020 / WIL BALDWIN

SEOUL (Reuters) – South Korea’s largest airline, Korean Air, plans to sell around 1 trillion won ($816.55 million) in new shares in its biggest rights issue in 20 years to raise funds amid mounting strains in the industry due to the pandemic.

Korean Air is the latest carrier to raise funds as travel restrictions imposed by governments around the world have led to airlines grounding their fleets worldwide.

Korean Air separately plans to receive 1.2 trillion won in support from South Korean state-owned banks.

About 79 million newly issued shares, to be listed on July 29, will be first bought by the carrier’s shareholders, including holding company Hanjin Kal which has a 30% stake in the carrier, followed by general public, the company said in a statement.

“Korean Air will continue to carry out self-rescue measures to overcome the dismal business environment due to COVID-19,” the company said.

Korean Air had 70% or more of its employees working in South Korea take a six-month leave of absence in April. Woo Kee-hong, the airline’s president, warned in March that the coronavirus outbreak could threaten its survival if the situation becomes prolonged.

Korean Air also picked last month a preferred bidder to buy its real estate and non-core assets, which some analysts value at about 400-500 billion won.

Korean Air had a debt-to-equity ratio of about 870% as of end-2019. It is expected to announce January-March quarter earnings later this week.

A spokeswoman for Korean Air said it was operating just 10% of its previously planned international schedule, and 60% of its domestic schedule.

The airline said it expects its June international schedule to rise to 20% of its previous plan, as it announced the addition of more international passenger flights to prepare for increased travel demand once COVID-19 restrictions are relaxed.

United Airlines Holdings Inc said earlier this month it plans to raise $2.25 billion through a bond offering, after announcing a public offering to raise more than $1 billion in April.

In March, Singapore Airlines said it would issue S$5.3 billion ($3.70 billion) in new equity and up to S$9.7 billion($6.78 billion) via mandatory convertible bonds in a rights issue backed by state investor Temasek Holdings.

($1 = 1,224.6700 won)

(Reporting by Joyce Lee; Editing by Simon Cameron-Moore and Louise Heavens)

Korean Air’s passenger planes are parked following outbreak of COVID-19, at Incheon International Airport

Airbus Warns Staff on Jobs With its ‘Survival at Stake’

April 27, 2020 / WIL BALDWIN

FILE PHOTO: Airbus CEO Guillaume Faury poses before Airbus’s annual press conference on full-year results

By Tim Hepher

PARIS (Reuters) – European planemaker Airbus issued a bleak assessment of the impact of the coronavirus crisis, telling the company’s 135,000 employees to brace for potentially deeper job cuts and warning its survival is at stake without immediate action.

In a letter to staff, Chief Executive Guillaume Faury said Airbus was “bleeding cash at an unprecedented speed” and that a recent drop of a third or more in production rates did not reflect the worst-case scenario and would be kept under review.

Airbus said it did not comment on internal communications.

The letter was sent to employees late on Friday, days before the company is due to give first-quarter results overshadowed by a pandemic that has left airlines struggling to survive and virtually halted jet deliveries since mid-March.

Airbus has begun implementing government-assisted furlough schemes starting with 3,000 workers in France, “but we may now need to plan for more far-reaching measures,” Faury said.

“The survival of Airbus is in question if we don’t act now,” he added.

Industry sources have said a new restructuring plan similar to its 2007 Power8 which saw 10,000 job cuts could be launched in the summer, but Faury indicated the company was already exploring “all options” while waiting for clarity on demand.

People familiar with the matter say Airbus is also in active discussions with European governments about tapping schemes to assist struggling industries, including state-guaranteed loans.

It has already expanded commercial credit lines with banks, buying what Faury described as “time to adapt and resize”.

Click the link below to read the full story!

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/airbus-warns-staff-jobs-survival-024101490.html

Norwegian Air Gets Guarantee From Norwegian Government

March 25, 2020 / WIL BALDWIN

Norwegian is pleased to announce that two Nordic banks have obtained credit committee approval to provide a guarantee for the required 10 percent for the first tranche of 300 million Norwegian kroner (NOK). Norwegian will secure the necessary headroom to pursue further guarantees from the Norwegian Government.

Government measures
On Thursday 19 March, the Norwegian Government proposed a guarantee of NOK 6 billion for the Norwegian airline industry, of which up to NOK 3 billion is directed to Norwegian. The guarantee will be up to 90 percent from the Norwegian Government provided that financial institutions contribute with the remaining 10 percent. The guarantee scheme will consist of three tranches with a maximum two years maturity.

Since Thursday evening Norwegian has worked with banks and financial institutions and is pleased to announce that two Nordic banks have obtained credit committee approval to contribute with the 10 percent required in guarantee for Tranche I and to provide the NOK 300 million in financing backed by the guarantee from the Norwegian Government. The Company is working with the banks and the Norwegian Export Credit Guarantee Agency (“GIEK”), who will administrate the guarantee scheme, on the documentation in order to obtain the NOK 300 million in liquidity as soon as possible.

The Company is now working with GIEK and the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Fisheries to clarify the criteria and terms related to the remaining tranches under the scheme and to obtain further guarantees from financial institutions in order to back such remaining tranches. Norwegian will update the market with its further plan of action and implications for its stakeholders as soon as the criteria and terms have been finalized. The Government guarantee scheme is crucial for the Company as the current state of the capital markets in combination with the challenging times for the airline industry limit the options available. The first NOK 300 million will create necessary headroom to pursue the remaining tranches of the guarantee scheme.

Operational update
Currently, most of the fleet is grounded and Norwegian has reduced its operations to a minimum. The airline will now primarily operate domestically in Norway and Sweden and between the Nordic capitals, in order to deliver on its corporate responsibility of maintaining critical infrastructure so that people and necessary goods and medical supplies can be transported during this unprecedented crisis. The limited schedule will remain in place until further notice. In addition, Norwegian has conducted repatriation flights together with the authorities in order to get citizens of Norway, Denmark and Sweden back home.

In order to reduce cost, Norwegian has temporarily laid off approximately 90 percent of its workforce and will continue to implement additional cost measures going forward.

Spirit Airlines to Take $25 Million Hit from Hurricane Dorian

September 7, 2019 / WIL BALDWIN

FILE PHOTO: A logo of low cost carrier Spirit Airlines is pictured on an Airbus plane in Colomiers near Toulouse

(Reuters) – Spirit Airlines <SAVE> on Friday cut its third-quarter outlook for a key revenue measure as it estimates an about $25 million hit on its sales, hurt by hundreds of flights cancellations due to Hurricane Dorian.

The company now expects third quarter unit revenue to fall between 2.5% and 3.5% compared to its prior estimate of a decline of 1% to 2%.

The hurricane has led airline operators including American Airlines <AAL.O> and Delta Air Lines <DAL.N> to cancel thousands of flights across the United States this week.

Dorian, which briefly made a landfall on the Outer Banks of North Carolina on Friday, is expected to bring tropical storm winds to Nantucket Island and Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts early on Saturday

https://in.reuters.com/article/us-storm-dorian-usa/hurricane-dorian-hits-north-carolinas-outer-banks-idINKCN1VR0OK.

(Reporting by Arundhati Sarkar in Bengaluru; Editing by Shailesh Kuber)

Jet Airways to Suspend Operations After Banks Reject Funding

April 17, 2019 / WIL BALDWIN

MUMBAI/NEW DELHI, April 17 (Reuters) – India’s embattled Jet Airways Ltd is set to temporarily halt operations from Wednesday onward after its lenders rejected the airline’s plea for emergency funds, three sources from inside the company said on Wednesday.

The airline, saddled with roughly $1.2 billion of bank debt, has been teetering for weeks after failing to receive a stop-gap loan of about $217 million from its lenders, as part of a rescue deal agreed in late March.

Separately, two sources at state-run banks told Reuters on Wednesday that the lenders had rejected the 4 billion rupees ($58 million) that Jet had sought to keep itself temporarily afloat, while its lenders attempted to identify an investor willing to acquire a majority stake in the airline and attempt to turn it around.

“Bankers did not want to go for a piecemeal approach which would keep the carrier flying for a few days and then again risk having Jet come back for more interim funding,” said one of the bank sources directly involved in Jet’s debt resolution process.

All five sources declined to be named as they have not been authorized to discuss the matter with media.

Jet and its lead lender State Bank of India (SBI) did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

($1 = 69.4120 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Tanvi Mehta and Promit Mukherjee in Mumbai and Aftab Ahmed and Aditi Shah in New Delhi; Writing by Euan Rocha; Editing by Susan Fenton)

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