South Africa’s High Court has given Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan 30 days to rule on a bid for rescue of the subsidiary low-cost in difficulty South African Airways (SAA), Mango Airlines.
It’s a major breakthrough for the airline’s business rescue specialist (BRP), which has been waiting for almost a year for a decision on the consortium’s 326 million ZAR (about $17 million) offer. South African Ubuntu Air Services. The North Gauteng High Court made the order in Pretoria on September 6, giving the minister until October 6, 2023 to make a decision and provide justification. Otherwise, it will be read that he accepted the sale.
Gordhan first received a proposal for the transfer of the low cost South African Airways last year. However, the lack of a decision put the deal in jeopardy as potential investors threatened to walk away. Acting Justice AJ Phooko found that the Minister of Public Enterprises had largely failed to make a decision for about four months. Following multiple requests from SAA and BRP to approve the sale of the low-cost carrier, the minister withheld his decision, continually asking all parties for additional information.
