New Ryanair ForumRYR and the British regulators
Page 1 of 1
RYR and the British regulators
by atoutprix Mon 8 Jul 2013 - 12:47
The (British) Competition Commission published its provisional findings at the end of May, which on O’Leary’s appraisal boil down to “three completely fictitious arguments as to what might happen”.
“First, that Ryanair might frustrate Aer Lingus’s ability to raise money through a rights issue; second, that Ryanair might impede the sale of Aer Lingus slots at Heathrow; and third, that Ryanair might frustrate Aer Lingus from merging with another airline.”
On the first, O’Leary points out that both the commission and Aer Lingus, which has around €1bn of gross cash on its balance sheet, agree that the airline does not need to raise cash. Indeed, the commission’s provisional report says: “We found it unlikely that Aer Lingus would need to raise equity in the medium-to-long term.”
Even so, Ryanair has given a written commitment to both the airline and the commission that it would not block a rights issue.
As to impeding any sale of Heathrow take-off and landing slots, O’Leary points out that, as recently as April, Ryanair supported Aer Lingus’s planned sale of a pair of slots to British Airways. O’Leary says that the Commission's concerns are“totally spurious anyway because notionally if they sell Heathrow slots it reduces the competition between Aer Lingus and Ryanair in the Ireland/UK corridor”.
Nor, O’Leary insists, would Ryanair block a bid for Aer Lingus. “If anyone wants to take over Aer Lingus, come talk to us. We’ll happily sell you our share,” he says. If we are forced to sell down, we’ll struggle to find a buyer because there is none. They say the reason nobody wants to buy is because Ryanair is sitting on Aer Lingus’s share register. No. It’s because they can’t compete with Ryanair in our home market.”
As to any wider influence Ryanair is claimed to exert, O’Leary says: “We have no influence. We’ve just voted against the reappointment of [Irish trade unionist] David Begg to the board. The Irish government made sure he stayed on anyway.”
The commission had been due to publish its report on July 11 but late last month extended its inquiry to September 5.
O’Leary is up for a fight. “If we lose we’ll appeal to the Competition Appeal Tribunal, then the Supreme Court and then the European Court of Human Rights. And if we win, Aer Lingus will appeal. It’s all just a job-creation exercise for the regulators and lawyers.”
Read (much) more :
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/transport/10165611/Ryanair-boss-goes-full-throttle-in-showdown-with-regulator.html
“First, that Ryanair might frustrate Aer Lingus’s ability to raise money through a rights issue; second, that Ryanair might impede the sale of Aer Lingus slots at Heathrow; and third, that Ryanair might frustrate Aer Lingus from merging with another airline.”
On the first, O’Leary points out that both the commission and Aer Lingus, which has around €1bn of gross cash on its balance sheet, agree that the airline does not need to raise cash. Indeed, the commission’s provisional report says: “We found it unlikely that Aer Lingus would need to raise equity in the medium-to-long term.”
Even so, Ryanair has given a written commitment to both the airline and the commission that it would not block a rights issue.
As to impeding any sale of Heathrow take-off and landing slots, O’Leary points out that, as recently as April, Ryanair supported Aer Lingus’s planned sale of a pair of slots to British Airways. O’Leary says that the Commission's concerns are“totally spurious anyway because notionally if they sell Heathrow slots it reduces the competition between Aer Lingus and Ryanair in the Ireland/UK corridor”.
Nor, O’Leary insists, would Ryanair block a bid for Aer Lingus. “If anyone wants to take over Aer Lingus, come talk to us. We’ll happily sell you our share,” he says. If we are forced to sell down, we’ll struggle to find a buyer because there is none. They say the reason nobody wants to buy is because Ryanair is sitting on Aer Lingus’s share register. No. It’s because they can’t compete with Ryanair in our home market.”
As to any wider influence Ryanair is claimed to exert, O’Leary says: “We have no influence. We’ve just voted against the reappointment of [Irish trade unionist] David Begg to the board. The Irish government made sure he stayed on anyway.”
The commission had been due to publish its report on July 11 but late last month extended its inquiry to September 5.
O’Leary is up for a fight. “If we lose we’ll appeal to the Competition Appeal Tribunal, then the Supreme Court and then the European Court of Human Rights. And if we win, Aer Lingus will appeal. It’s all just a job-creation exercise for the regulators and lawyers.”
Read (much) more :
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/transport/10165611/Ryanair-boss-goes-full-throttle-in-showdown-with-regulator.html
atoutprix- FR Moderator
- Number of posts : 2351
Location : Brussels, Belgium (nearest FR base : BRU)
Registration date : 2007-12-13
Page 1 of 1
Permissions in this forum:
You cannot reply to topics in this forum|
|
|