SpiceJet's former promoter Ajay Singh, who is leading a consortium of American private equity (PE) firms, is likely to submit a revival plan for the airline to the government on Friday.
With Christmas and New Year being the traditional holiday period in the US, sources are expecting to see the deal to take shape in the next six weeks.
The consortium comprising Indigo Partners, Texas Pacific Group and JP Morgan is backing Singh's bid to take over the airline from the Maran-led Sun Group.
The last week saw increased activity to get the cash-strapped airline back on track, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi enquiring on the airline's status and Singh meeting civil aviation ministry officials.
SpiceJet is operating only two-thirds of the flights it operated in July – 345 flights a day. The airline had been forced to return 20 out of its 37 Boeing 737 fleet.
The week saw SpiceJet being allowed to accept bookings in excess of 30 days, which has improved its cash flow by about ₹9-10 crore per day. The airline has also raised ₹200 crore from investors.
The airline needs to secure at least ₹1,400 crore to continue flying. The civil aviation ministry is keen to see Ajay Singh bring in capital and take over the operations, reports Business Standard.
SpiceJet's creditors include oil marketing companies, airports regulator Airports Authority of India, tax authorities and lenders.
Reports of the planned revival lifted SpiceJet shares on Friday morning on the stock exchanges. The stock hit a high of ₹19.50 on the BSE, up 8% from its previous close.
