According to some engaged in the process, lenders to Go First can request that bidders in the airline's resolution process enhance their bids in order to maximize recovery. According to the stated sources, if the offers are insufficient, the lenders may choose to proceed with liquidation.
Resolution Professional (RP) Shailendra Ajmera will now investigate whether the airline's two remaining bids comply with the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) after they were opened on Friday. The primary lenders to the grounded carrier are the Bank of Baroda and the Central Bank of India. Of the Rs 7,040 crore in claims that the RP has acknowledged, Rs 4,257 crore comes from financial creditors headed by the Central Bank of India.
A tiny percentage of the entire offer value, according to some engaged in the process, is paid upfront; the remainder is dependent on a number of variables, including the aircraft, slots, and bilateral rights that are retained, as well as the outcome of the compensation dispute with American engine manufacturer Pratt & Whitney.
The leading bidder, according to the sources mentioned above, is a group led by Nishant Pitti, co-owner of the online travel agency EaseMyTrip, and SpiceJet owner Ajay Singh. Their combined offer is Rs 600 crore.
Go First Airways Committee of Creditors and Lenders Will Gather Today To Examine Bids. The other bidder is Jaideep Mirchandani, who also owns the majority of tiny airline Zoom Air, which has been grounded for more than five years. SkyOne is situated in Sharjah.
Although both plans were opened, lenders have not yet reviewed the transactions for either plan, according to a source with knowledge of the situation. In a few days, the meeting minutes will be distributed, but before then, lenders must carefully review the documentation for compliance and legal issues.
It's possible that lenders will decide to bite the bullet if the offers don't get better.
"Both applicants' upfront payments are too little. Naturally, lenders will bargain and carry out the required procedures," the source stated. "But in case the value does not move, then there is probably little option other than liquidation because both applicants are also not in the best of financial health." Sources said that the requirements attached to the bids were necessary since the data room was lacking in information.
"Since it's a bankrupt company, it didn't have employees who could give detailed insights about the company," stated a bidder. Thus, a great deal of other aspects require investigation. We are willing to discuss terms with lenders."
Following a disastrous first round in October in which Naveen Jindal's expression of interest (EoI), the only preliminary inquiry to qualify as a bidder for the airline, failed to materialize into a final proposal, this is the second effort by lenders to sell the firm. The Wadia-owned airline claimed lengthy delays in obtaining airworthy engines from Pratt & Whitney as the reason for its May 3 voluntary bankruptcy filing before the Mumbai bench of the NCLT.
