SpiceJet (SG, Delhi International) will settle a USD29.9 million dispute with Celestial Aviation Leasing after reaching a deal on the sidelines of a National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) hearing in Delhi on October 10.
The matter, Celestial Aviation Services Ltd v. SpiceJet Limited, was first listed in early June 2023 and concerns unpaid leases for nine aircraft. The October 10 hearing was scheduled to hear arguments from counsel for Celestial in favour of declaring SpiceJet insolvent. However, both counsel for both parties told the court the intention was to settle the matter, and Justices Mahendra Khandelwal and Sanjeev Ranjam adjourned the case until November 7. Neither SpiceJet nor Celestial responded to a request for comment.
Celestial Aviation Services Limited was formerly known as GE Capital Aviation Services Limited. AerCap acquired the business in 2021 when it purchased GE's global aviation entities. Celestial is the second significant lessor SpiceJet has recently settled a lease dispute with, having converted debts totalling INR2.3 billion (USD27.7 million) held by Carlyle Aviation Partners SPVs into equity. However, another lessor, Aircastle, reportedly rejected a debt for equity swap offer from SpiceJet. Insolvency bids against the budget airline in the NCLT brought by Willis Lease Finance, Wilmington Trust SP Services (Dublin), and Aircastle remain ongoing.
Meanwhile, the Delhi High Court has adjourned until October 13 a hearing involving a bid by SpiceJet's former majority owner, Kalanithi Maran, to extract payment from a separate judgement against SpiceJet and its now current majority owner, Ajay Singh. The courts previously awarded Maran INR3.97 billion (USD47.4 million) in relation to a long-running dispute that could be traced back to a 2015 majority shareholding transfer from Maran to Singh. The courts upheld the award in July this year, and SpiceJet made a part payment of INR1 billion (USD12 million) in September.
Maran now wants the remainder and is asking for all of SpiceJet's recently declared INR2.04 billion (USD24.5 million) quarterly net profit, an outcome SpiceJet's legal counsel say could push the airline into insolvency.
