Nok Air resets court hearing as creditors fail to agree

Nok Air (DD, Bangkok Don Mueang) has revealed that the Central Bankruptcy Court in Bangkok held a hearing to consider its restructuring plan on September 6, but that a further hearing is needed to try to hammer out unresolved issues and will be staged on September 15.

“As there were some objection petitions that still cannot be resolved, so the court allowed the planner and creditors to further negotiate to resolve the remaining objections and scheduled 15 September 2021 for the next court hearing on reading the order on the rehabilitation plan,” the airline said in a Stock Exchange of Thailand filing.

“If the plan is approved by the court, the company will proceed to implement the rehabilitation process according to the approved plan,” it added.

In late August, it was revealed that seven creditors, including two Thai banks and two unnamed lessors, had objected to the low-cost carrier’s restructuring plan. The banks requested further clarification on the repayment of loans taken out by defunct offshoot NokScoot that had been guaranteed by Nok Air, its 51% shareholder.

Three days after the disclosure on the court hearing, the Stock Exchange of Thailand said on September 9 that it would give Nok Air another three years to resolve its negative financial position before delisting the airline. It had added a non-compliance sign indicating that Nok is subject to possible delisting due to negative equity, and this will remain in force unless “the company has proceeded to eliminate the grounds for delisting,” according to the statement.

That missive followed the publication of the airline’s 2020 results, which showed a loss for the year of THB7.3 billion baht (USD223 million).

The bourse also demanded that the airline “set a timeline to implement its rehabilitation plan or any other decisions, if any, and publish that information to shareholders and investors by October 8.” And it “recommends that investors and shareholders carefully study Nok’s financial statements, including its announcements of further actions.”

Wutthiphum Jurangkool, the airline’s chief executive and acting chief financial officer, has said that Nok Air aims to inject THB5 billion (USD153 million) in liquidity through a five-year rehabilitation plan and to upgrade its service to the premium category, according to local media.