SpiceJet plans to raise Rs 200 cr

MUMBAI: Low-cost carrier SpiceJet, which attracted a Rs 380-crore investment from US billionaire Wilbur Ross last year, is now planning to raise close to Rs 200 crore before the end of the current financial year, said a person close to the development. The instrument to raise this money is not yet decided, but options like foreign currency convertible bonds (FCCBs) and banks loans are being considered. ���The airline���s officials will discuss this at the next board meeting,��� he said.

When contacted, SpiceJet���s chief executive officer Sanjay Aggarwal told ET: ���Any cash the company might raise will be used to build reserves or to grow the airline.��� He declined to elaborate on the issue. SpiceJet is promoted by a group of investors led by the Kansagra family and Delhi-based Ajay Singh.

SpiceJet is one of the two airlines that is making profits in a segment which is estimated to post a cumulative
annual loss of Rs 18,000 crore in the current fiscal. SpiceJet has posted a net profit of Rs 26 crore in the last quarter, against a loss of Rs 129 crore in the year-ago period. It clocked a 15% jump in revenues. A substantial portion of the proposed fund raising will go for pre-payment of new aircraft orders.