Investor clashes over £7.6bn Easyjet deal
BUDGET airline easyJet is buying new aircraft worth up to £7.6billion, sparking a new row with rebel investor Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou.
Yet another huge capital expenditure deal with the same supplier at ‘secret’ prices… naturally it raises more questions than answers.
It is ordering 135 Airbus A320 aircraft from the European aerospace giant for delivery between 2015 and 2022. It also has rights to buy 100 more A320s.
But the airline, which needs shareholder approval for the deal, may face a battle with Sir Stelios, who has accused it of putting investment before shareholder returns.
Hitting out at easyJet’s refusal to give the exact cost of the purchase, he said: “Yet another huge capital expenditure deal with the same supplier at ‘secret’ prices… naturally it raises more questions than answers.”
Chief executive Carolyn McCall said easyJet was unable to reveal the actual price due to confidentiality of its deal with Airbus. But she said it had won a substantial discount.