AirNam repays fuel debt

AIR Namibia says it has been paying its outstanding fuel bill with Engen Namibia in weekly instalments since mid-January.

Media reports last month said Air Namibia was unable to settle its fuel bill, which stood at N$60 million, with the fuel company.
Air Namibia’s managing director, Theo Namases, told The Namibian last month that 40 percent of the airline’s revenue goes towards fuel.
The N$60 million has been outstanding since November last year.
“We are paying our service provider, Engen Namibia, on a weekly basis until we finish the outstanding amount,” Air Namibia  spokesperson Paul Nakawa told Nampa on Monday.
He said Air Namibia’s international flights to Frankfurt are still refuelling in Luanda, Angola.
It is not known how much the troubled airline owes its other creditors.
Nakawa denied an allegation that Air Namibia is planning on cancelling the Luanda stop-overs this month due to an alleged outstanding bill with the service provider in Angola.
Air Namibia recently reduced its flights to Frankfurt for a period of six months. This arrangement will be in place until June 24.
The measure was necessitated because the lease agreement for the two Airbus aircraft used on the Frankfurt route expires towards the middle of the year.
The Airbus A340-300 will be replaced by a new Airbus A330-200, which is expected to arrive in October.
In March last year, Air Namibia received a bailout of N$500 million from Government, bringing their total bailouts since the turn of the century to approximately N$3.5 billion. – Nampa

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