InterGlobe didn’t qualify to bid for Virgin Australia: Reports

NEW DELHI: Billionaire Rahul Bhatia’s InterGlobe Enterprises (IGE) did not qualify to bid for Virgin Australia, according to reports.

Reuters on Monday reported that Virgin Australia Holdings’ administrators had short-listed four potential buyers for the airline — BGH Capital, Bain Capital, IndiGo Partners and Cyrus Capital Partners. The report added that the administrators were to receive as many as eight non-binding indicative offers from potential buyers before a submission deadline on Friday.

It wasn’t immediately known why IGE didn’t qualify to bid for the airline. A spokesperson for IGE, which part owns India’s IndiGo airline, said the company would not comment on the report. “We note the media coverage in Australia and have nothing further to add,” the spokesperson said in an emailed response to ET.

IGE had confirmed last week that it had shown interest in buying Virgin Australia, a 20-year-old carrier that has become one of the first serious casualties of the Covid-19 crisis by entering into administration last month.

While industry analysts had said the IGE group had credentials to bid for the carrier, it was highly unlikely that the group would win the airline. Analysts also believe that it would not have been easy for IGE to operate an airline in Australia.

With the pandemic crippling the aviation business, Virgin Australia suspended operations with $7 billion of debt and, according to reports, $100 million in cash.

IndiGo's plans, before the world was hit by the pandemic, included expanding internationally with a two-class product, including a business class.

IGE, which has a strong balance sheet of Rs 18,922 crore as of March 31, 2019, has ambitions to get into more international market. A number of opportunities would come due to the Covid-19 pandemic hitting businesses, especially in hospitality and aviation, according to industry experts.