SAA Chief: Widebody leases to be signed by October

By MARTIN RIVERS / DOHA South African Airways (SAA) will sign leases for 20-25 long-haul aircraft by October, chief executive Monwabisi Kalawe told African Aerospace on the sidelines of the IATA AGM in Doha.

The flag carrier shelved its previous plan for a widebody renewal last year, after the government complained that the tender did not satisfy localisation benefits mandated under the National Industrial Participation (NIP) programme. NIP is a government-backed scheme that engages local enterprise in high-value transactions by the State.

Kalawe (pictured right) said the tender has now been re-specified to the government's satisfaction, and a transaction advisor was selected on 30 May to move the renewal forward.

"The deadline that the government has given us to conclude the RFP (request for proposal) process and select the manufacturer or lessor is October 2014," he confirmed. "The number, I would estimate it to be anything between 20 and 25. Our ambition is for the first two or three to start coming in 2017, 2018."

Leasing is the "only option" for the flag carrier, Kalawe said, because SAA's "weak balance sheet" will not allow for capital acquisitions.

Asked about SAA's plans for a west African subsidiary, he said Nigeria and Senegal have been ruled out as locations and a delegation is now preparing to visit Ghana. "If all the boxes are ticked and we get the right approval from our board initially, from the shareholder, the Department of Public Enterprises, then ideally we'd like to do it in the next two years."

Kalawe dismissed local media reports that he had breached protocol by negotiating a takeover of Senegal Airlines, blaming the suggestion on exaggerated claims by that country's Finance Ministry.

He admitted that there has been "conflict" in SAA's boardroom in recent weeks, but voiced confidence that incoming Public Enterprises minister Lynne Brown would steady the ship. "She has balls of steel," he smiled. "She has a commercial background and is not aligned with anyone."