SYDNEY Reuters - Australia's Qantas Airways Ltd said on Friday it had signed an A $802 million $595 million deal to sell real estate at Sydney Airport to a consortium led by LOGOS Property Group to reduce debt as the carrier recover from Pandemic Lows.
Settlement of most of the lots is expected in the current half to end Dec. 31, said the airline in a statement.
We'll use these funds to help pay down debt that we built up during the pandemic, Qantas Chief Executive Alan Joyce said. The strength of this sale and its impact on our balance sheet means we can get back to investing in core parts of our business sooner. Qantas said it had also entered discussions with LOGOS about potential future development options for the sites being sold, including a dedicated precinct for the airline and the sale of additional land near the lots acquired.
The airline said it expected to conclude evaluation of those proposals in early 2022, and if an agreement was reached, it had the potential to raise the total value of the deal to more than A $1 billion.
Pension fund AustralianSuper said in a separate statement it was part of the LOGOS-led consortium.