Serbian Minister of Finance and Economy Mlađan Dinkić has said the Serbian government is planning to form a new debt-free national airline.
“We have plans to form a new airline, which would have no debts, and we also plan to renew our old deal with Airbus for the lease of 12 new planes, for which the state would guarantee EUR 140 million to the new company,” Dinkić told Belgrade-based tabloid Blic.
He explained that a Serbian government delegation which visited Abu Dhabi last week came upon the idea of getting Etihad Airways from the United Arab Emirates involved in the project. Etihad would give guarantees for the money and, in return, would become a co-owner of JAT.
The proposal is still in the idea stage, and the government’s decision on the formation of a new company and building of a new fleet is not final, said the finance minister.
According to Dinkić, one reason why Etihad could be interested in the deal is the Emirates’s readiness to invest in Serbian agriculture in the wish to ensure a steady supply of food for their country.
This requires adequate logistics centers – a port on the Danube and a cargo terminal at Belgrade airport for the transport of fresh produce, he explained.
He said Al Dahra Agriculture would likely take over the Port of Novi Sad and turn it into a logistics center for the export of agricultural products from Serbia to the Emirates and European markets.
Source B92
