Mallya may go for 51% in Deccan to fly abroad

Bangalore: Buoyed by the response to Air Deccan open offer, UB chairman Vijay Mallya hinted that he may be interested in hiking stake in the low-cost carrier to 51%, making it a direct subsidiary of his group.
Mallya’s UB Holdings has made the mandatory open offer for 20% stake in Air Deccan’s parent Deccan Aviation after it picked up 26% through preferential allotment in May this year. UB made the offer for 27 million outstanding shares, and has received in excess of 20 million shares till Friday morning. The open offer process, managed by Edelweiss, is closing on October 1.
“Some of the institutions wait till the last session to tender shares. I am confident of us receiving at least 20% shares,” Mr Mallya told ET. Replying to a query on Kingfisher Airlines flying overseas, he added: “If I have 51% stake in Deccan, it becomes a subsidiary, giving me the right to fly overseas. Deccan will complete the mandatory five years of domestic operations next year.”
29/09/07 Boby Kurian & Urvashi Jha/Economic Times

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Categories: Air Deccan Sep 2007, Foreign Sep 2007, Kingfisher Sep 2007