January 23 (SeeNews) - UAE-based Etihad Airways CEO James Hogan has said the company's long-term investments in flag carrier Air Serbia are already delivering a return.
“Jet Airways, Air Serbia, Air Seychelles, Virgin Australia and Etihad Regional have all used our capital investments to help structure their businesses into more efficient and profitable operations," Hogan said at the 19th Annual Global Airfinance Conference in Dublin, as quoted by Etihad in a statement on Thursday.
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The investments made by Etihad have had an immediate impact on the revenue side, delivering hundreds of millions of dollars in additional income, Hogan said.
The benefits have been replicated in all minority investments of Etihad, including Air Serbia, he added.
In 2013, Etihad Airways signed a strategic partnership deal to acquire 49% of then state-owned JAT Airways while getting a five-year management contract for the airline and rebranding it to Air Serbia in October of the same year. The Serbian government owns the remaining 51%.
In February 2016, Montenegrin media reported that government officials were negotiating the privatisation of flag carrier Montenegro Airlines with Etihad. Earlier this month, Montenegro's transport minister Osman Nurkovic said the government aims to keep a majority stake in the flag carrier.