Having lost out on the winning bid for SAS Scandinavian Airlines (SK, Copenhagen Kastrup), Apollo Global Management has failed to delay an October 12 hearing during which the New York Bankruptcy Court will consider reimbursing USD3 million to the winning consortium for their expenses related to the bid.
As reported, a consortium including Air France-KLM, lessor Castlelake, Danish investment firm Lind Invest ApS, and the Danish state won the bid on October 3 for more than 86% shareholding in SAS in exchange for providing USD1.175 billion in Chapter 11 exit financing, comprising new equity and convertible debt.
On October 6, SAS asked the court to expedite a hearing to meet an October 10 deadline by when the airline had promised to reimburse the consortium for its expenses incurred in their pitch.
However, Apollo objected, arguing the airline failed to show why the reimbursement was an emergency requiring a departure from the standard 14-day notice period prescribed by the local bankruptcy rule. It argued the emergency was self-created, resulting from SAS's own promise to pay the reimbursement by October 10, a deadline the airline would miss even under its proposed schedule. It said shortening the process would prejudice interested parties, including Apollo, which intends to object to the expense reimbursement motion.
But on October 10, Judge Michael E. Wiles overruled the objection and set a date for a hearing on October 12. He found an expedited hearing would be in the "best interest of the debtors, their estates, their creditors, and all parties in interest".
