airBaltic council shake-up as strategic investor to be finalised in coming weeks
January 21, 2025
The Latvian Ministry of Transport and the airBaltic Council have agreed to terminate the duties of the current Council as of 11 February, when a new board will be selected to “continue building on the progress achieved and support airBaltic’s strategic goals” – crucially, as the flag carrier prepares for a potential IPO later this year.
With State Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Andulis Židkovs expecting “the process of attracting a strategic investor” to be completed “in the coming weeks” (with the government having “taken all necessary legal steps to successfully conclude the process”), airBaltic is set to begin its “next phase of development” under a new council.
“The work of the council has ensured compliance with the principles of good corporate governance, ensuring transparency and protecting the interests of all parties involved,” wrote Chairman of airBaltic’s supervisory board Klavs Vasks.
However, in a personal statement in LinkedIn, Vasks compared the last 18 months to a “crazy rollercoaster ride,” alluding to perceived tension of “political short-sightedness and indifference when it comes to making decisions that will come to the front pages of the news”. Highlighting the importance of the 97.97% state-owned national carrier to the Latvian economy, he described his time spent “trying to break the political agenda by achieving a change of approach to making important decisions for the development of assets important for the country”.
Amid previous speculation of a public bail-out, Vasks cautioned on 8 January that the need to attract a strategic investor “is not only a significant financial support for the company’s capital, [but] also serves as a critical confirmation of the company’s operation and future growth opportunities” – presenting his perspective that “airBaltic is facing major crossroads”.
airBaltic strongly refuted the suggestion of such a bail-out, confirming earlier this month that “negotiations with the pre-strategic investor in airBaltic are ongoing and at an advanced stage,” adding that “preparations for a potential IPO are also in progress with the earliest possible timing of the listing in 2025, and when the market conditions are right”.
With the Ministry of Transport having initiated the selection process for the new board, a new council is scheduled to be elected at the next shareholders’ meeting on 11 February.
