Shares fall in Norwegian Air after it seeks cash injection
Shares have fallen in Norwegian Air this morning after it launched an emergency bid to raise 3bn kroner (£268 million) through a rights issue.
Shares fell 30% after news of the emergency fundraising was declared. It follows an announcement that preliminary earnings for 2018 showed an operating loss of roughly 3.8bn kroner.
A rights issue allows existing company shareholders the chance to buy new shares at a special price.
Norwegian’s largest shareholders, chief executive Bjorn Kjos and chairman Bjorn Halvor Kise, have already committed to buying 343m kroner-worth of shares, and other large shareholders have said they will take 267m kroner.
The cash injection call comes less than a week after International Airlines Group (IAG) said it would ditch its plan to buy the airline. Norwegian is not currently in talks with any other buyer.
IAG’s decision last Thursday saw Norwegian shares drop 20%.
Kjos said the airline would change its strategic focus from growth to making cost savings.
He said: "We will now get in place a strengthened balance sheet that supports the further development of the company."
In a statement, the airline added that this would ‘increase its competitiveness and stand-alone financial strength’.
The carrier said flights were unaffected by the news.
Lisa
Lisa joined Travel Weekly nearly 25 years ago as technology reporter and then sailed around the world for a couple of years as cruise correspondent, before becoming deputy editor. Now freelance, Lisa writes for various print and web publications, edits Corporate Traveller’s client magazine, Gateway, and works on the acclaimed Remembering Wildlife series of photography books, which raise awareness of nature’s most at-risk species and helps to fund their protection.
Vegas’s Billion-Dollar Secrets – What They Don’t Want Tourists to Know
Visit Florida’s New CEO Bryan Griffin Shares His Vision for State Tourism with Graham
Chicago’s Tourism Renaissance: Graham Interviews Kristin Reynolds of Choose Chicago
Graham Talks with Cassandra McCauley of MMGY NextFactor About the Latest Industry Research
Destination International’s Andreas Weissenborn: Research, Advocacy, and Destination Impact
Graham and Don Welsh Discuss the Success of Destinations International’s Annual Conference
Graham and CEO Andre Kiwitz on Ventura Travel’s UK Move and Recruitment for the Role
Brett Laiken and Graham Discuss Florida’s Tourism Momentum and Global Appeal
Graham and Elliot Ferguson on Positioning DC as a Cultural and Inclusive Global Destination
Graham Talks to Fraser Last About His England-to-Ireland Trek for Mental Health Awareness
Kathy Nelson Tells Graham About the Honour of Hosting the World Cup and Kansas City’s Future
Graham McKenzie on Sir Richie Richardson’s Dual Passion for Golf and His Homeland, Antigua
ADS PRO 
TAP Air Portugal to operate 29 flights due to strike on December 11
Qatar Airways offers flexible payment options for European travellers
Airbnb eyes a loyalty program but details remain under wraps
Air Mauritius reduces frequencies to Europe and Asia for the holiday season
Major rail disruptions around and in Berlin until early 2026