Etihad says deal with Jet Airways needs to be revised

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Abu Dhabi: Etihad Airways PJSC needs to revise its deal to buy a stake in India’s Jet Airways(India) Ltd and it is too soon to say when a final agreement will be struck, the Abu Dhabi airline’s chairman said on Sunday.
Sheikh Hamed bin Zayed al-Nahayan, speaking on the sidelines of a defence exhibition in the United Arab Emirates capital, said officials would meet Indian trade minister Anand Sharma to discuss the deal.
Asked if a Jet deal would be signed by March or April, Sheikh Hamed said: “I don’t know ... we need to revise it.”
The terms of the possible deal have not been disclosed, but a government official said earlier this month Etihad was in talks to pick up a 24% stake in Jet for up to $330 million.
Asked if a Jet deal would be finalized soon, Sheikh Hamed said: “It’s too early to decide.”
Sheikh Hamed, who is also managing director of sovereign wealth fund Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, did not specify why the deal needs to be revised.
“We need to talk with the Indians about other issues ... including this,” he said.
Unlisted Etihad’s chief executive said this month the Abu Dhabi carrier was conducting due diligence on making an investment and would present the findings to its board.
The Jet Airways deal would be the first foreign investment in India’s aviation industry since the government relaxed ownership rules last September.
This allows foreign airlines to buy up to 49% in the country’s domestic carriers, many of which are facing stiff competition and high operating costs.
Sheikh Hamed also dismissed talk of the carrier’s interest in India’s grounded Kingfisher Airlines Ltd as “rumours”.
Kingfisher said in December it was in talks with several investors, including Etihad, for a stake sale but those hopes have faded as the indebted airline remains grounded.