Norway sells remaining stake in SAS airline (updated)

Copenhagen Airports A/S

27/06/2018 09:16

* Norway's 10 pct stake sold to institutional investors
    * Minister anticipates further airline M&A
    * No further Norway privatisation expected

 (TksAdds industry minister quotes, background, share price)
    By Camilla Knudsen and Terje Solsvik
    OSLO, June 27 (Reuters) - Norway sold its remaining 9.88
percent stake in Scandinavian airline SAS  SAS.ST  for 652
million Swedish crowns ($73.42 million), it said on Wednesday,
adding this was not the start of a privatisation drive by the
centre-right government.
    The Norwegian state, a partial owner of SAS since 1946, has
gradually cut its holdings and the latest sale of 37.8 million
shares finalised its exit from the Sweden-headquartered airline.
    "SAS has developed well in recent years and capital markets
are strong, making this a good time to sell," Industry Minister
Torbjoern Roe Isaksen told Reuters.
    "There are also uncertainties linked to state ownership,
it's not just income, there can also be expenses," the minister
said, adding that the Norwegian state had injected around 1
billion crowns ($122.89 million) into SAS in 2009-2010.
    The stake was sold via book-building to multiple
institutional investors for 17.25 Swedish crowns ($1.94) per
share, a 3.1 percent discount to Tuesday's closing price of
17.81 crowns. SAS was not expected to change its strategy or
operations as a result, Roe Isaksen said.
    By 0751 GMT shares traded down 3.9 percent in Stockholm at
17.11 crowns.
    The airline industry will see significant change, he said,
adding that privatisation, passenger growth and the entry of new
players in recent years will drive development.
    "It's likely that we face bigger consolidation in the
airline market," he said.
    Budget carrier Norwegian Air  NWC.OL , which has surpassed
SAS to become the largest Nordic carrier by passenger volume, is
itself the subject of takeover interest by the likes of British
Airways-owner IAG  ICAG.L  and Lufthansa  LHAG.DE .  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL8N1TK10K
    The Swedish and Danish governments remain SAS' top owners
with holdings of 14.8 and 14.2 percent respectively. But while
Sweden has signalled its willingness to cut its stake at some
point, Denmark is reluctant to do so for fear of damaging
Copenhagen Airport's  KBHL.CO  position as a major regional hub.
    Norway's SAS sale should not be seen as the start of a
privatisation drive, Roe Isaksen said.
    The government is the top shareholder of telecoms group
Telenor  TEL.OL , aluminium firm Norsk Hydro  NHY.OL ,
fertiliser maker Yara  YAR.OL  and defence contractor Kongsberg
Gruppen  KOG.OL , as well as of oil firm Equinor  EQNR.OL ,
formerly known as Statoil.
    "Selling out of SAS is enough," the minister said.
($1 = 8.8807 Swedish crowns)
($1 = 8.1375 Norwegian crowns)

 (Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips and Alexandra Hudson)
 ((terje.solsvik@thomsonreuters.com; +47 918 666 70; Reuters
Messaging: terje.solsvik.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))