SIA says it has 74.5% of Tigerair shares, short of 90% needed for delist offer to take off

Tigerair shareholders have until 5.30pm on Jan 8 to decide whether to accept SIA's offer. PHOTO: ST FILE

SINGAPORE - Singapore Airlines disclosed on Tuesday (Dec 29) - the day after its offer to take Tiger Airways private was originally set to expire - that it owns, controls or has agreed to acquire about 74.5 per cent of the budget carrier's shares - short of the 90 per cent required for the move to succeed.

In a filing to the Singapore Exchange before trading opened, SIA said it owns or controls about 1.86 billion Tigerair shares as of 5pm on Monday (Dec 28), after it gained acceptances for about 469 million shares, accounting for 18.76 per cent of Tigerair stock.

Tigerair shareholders now have another 11 days to decide whether to accept SIA's offer of S$0.41 a share after the national carrier announced on Monday it is extending its offer to 5.30pm on Jan 8.

SIA's move came after the Securities Investors Association Singapore asked its board to consider extending the Dec 28 deadline and improving its offer price.

SIA has not raised the price of its offer, which includes the option for Tigerair shareholders to buy SIA shares at S$11.1043 apiece.

Shares of SIA rose 0.6 per cent to close at S$11.12 on Monday, while Tigerair stayed unchanged at S$0.405.

SIA is seeking to delist Tiger Airways after it made losses in five of the past six quarters because of over-expansion in a competitive market that has caused other airlines to privatise or collapse.

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