AF-KLM looking to acquire controlling stake in SAS airline

PARIS

The Air France-KLM airline group on July 4 said that it "will initiate proceedings" to acquire a majority stake in Scandinavian airline SAS, of which it is already a major shareholder.

"Air France-KLM intends to increase its stake in SAS's share capital, from 19.9 percent currently to 60.5 percent, via a full acquisition of the stakes held by Castlelake and Lind Invest," the French-Dutch group said.

Air France-KLM acquired its initial stake in the summer of 2024 after the Scandinavian airline had been weakened by the COVID epidemic.

The airlines began some code sharing and joint marketing, including bringing SAS into their SkyTeam alliance.

Air France-KLM has never hidden its intention to increase its stake in SAS.

"This contemplated transaction reflects the successful turnaround of SAS and the positive results generated by the commercial cooperation initiated in 2024," Air France-KLM said, adding that it intends to close the operation by the second half of 2026 if it can overcome regulatory hurdles.

It said that the value of the contemplated investment would be determined at closing, based on SAS's latest financial performances.

Air France-KLM's initial 19.9 percent investment in SAS was valued at $144.5 million.

Air France-KLM would hold the majority of the seats on SAS's board.

SAS had revenue of 4.1 billion euros ($4.8 billion) in 2024, carrying some 25 million passengers.

Air France-KLM, meanwhile, generated revenue of 31.5 billion euros and carried some 98 million passengers.