As the company tries to get “more exposure” to Emirates and flydubai airlines, bond sales and increased stock are anticipated to fuel company growth.
Through the issuance of dollar-denominated bonds and increased owner equity, AviLease, a plane lessor controlled by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, is on course to more than triple its expansion to $20 billion by 2030.
According to AviLease’s CEO Edward O’Byrne, the sovereign wealth fund section intends to grow at a $3 billion per year rate, with bond issuances ranging from $1.5 billion to $2 billion.
According to Mr. O’Byrne in the interview on Wednesday, the Riyadh-based company anticipates receiving an investment-grade credit rating by the end of 2024.
“Over the next ten years, Saudi Arabia is expected to experience growth on a truly remarkable scale. We’re talking about more than doubling cargo volume and tripling passenger travel, he said.
We are considering allocating the additional equity that PIF has committed to the balance sheet over the course of the next seven years.
This week, AviLease announced that it would pay $3.6 billion to acquire Standard Chartered’s aviation finance division.
The Saudi firm will purchase a portfolio of 100 narrow-body planes and take on the role of service provider for an additional 22. 167 aircraft will be owned and operated by the merged platform.
After the acquisition is complete, the PIF-backed company will emerge with a balance sheet of $6 billion and 167 aircraft, with plans to grow to $20 billion and 300 aircraft by 2030, according to Mr. O’Byrne.
According to Mr. O’Byrne, AviLease will “have a lot of capacity” to purchase wide-body aircraft following the acquisition of the narrow-body jet portfolio.
new airline company To handle long-haul flights, Riyadh Air, which is also supported by the PIF, ordered 39 Boeing 787 wide-body aircraft with options for 33 more.
After beginning operations in early 2025, Riyadh Air is expanding its fleet of aircraft in order to reach 100 destinations by 2030.
In Saudi Arabia, wide-body expansion will continue, although daily bids on wide-body assets are made on the international market, according to Mr. O’Byrne.
According to him, AviLease is frequently in communication with operators in the area and aims to increase its customer base of airlines to 100 from the present 47.
We aim to develop the Middle East as an aviation center since we are friendly neighbors. We are aware of flydubai, and we want to learn more about it and Emirates, the man added.
AviLease, established in June 2022, is a PIF initiative to expand the aviation industry in the kingdom.
As part of its Vision 2030 economic diversification plan, Saudi Arabia wants to increase the number of tourists it receives and improve its aviation industry.
According to the Saudi Aviation Strategy, actions must be taken to increase the number of destinations from 99 to 250 and to triple the annual passenger volume to 330 million by 2030.
$100 billion in investments from the public and commercial sectors support this goal.