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### Viewing cable 09KINGSTON743, AIR JAMAICA SALE: DEAL OR NO DEAL? GOJ CAN'T STAY ON MESSAGE

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Reference ID | Created | Released | Classification | Origin
--- | --- | --- | --- | ---
09KINGSTON743 | 2009-11-30 13:50 | 2011-06-13 09:30 | CONFIDENTIAL | Embassy Kingston

`

    VZCZCXYZ0000
    OO RUEHWEB

    DE RUEHKG #0743/01 3341350
    ZNY CCCCC ZZH
    O 301350Z NOV 09
    FM AMEMBASSY KINGSTON
    TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 0322
    INFO RUEATRS/DEPT OF TREASURY WASHINGTON DC IMMEDIATE
    RUEHDG/AMEMBASSY SANTO DOMINGO IMMEDIATE
    RUEHLO/AMEMBASSY LONDON IMMEDIATE 0092
    RUEHOT/AMEMBASSY OTTAWA IMMEDIATE
    RUEHKG/AMEMBASSY KINGSTON

` `

    C O N F I D E N T I A L KINGSTON 000743

    SIPDIS
    STATE FOR WHA/CAR (VDEPIRRO) (WSMITH) (JMACK-WILSON)
    WHA/EPSC (MROONEY) (FCORNEILLE)
    EEB/ESC/IEC (GGRIFFIN)
    EEB/IFD/ODF (MSIEMER)
    EEB/TRA (VLIMAYE-DAVIS)
    EEB/ESC/IEC/EPC (MMCMANUS)
    INR/RES (RWARNER)
    INR/I (SMCCORMICK)
    SANTO DOMINGO FOR FCS AND FAS
    TREASURY FOR ERIN NEPHEW
    EXPORT IMPORT BANK FOR ANNETTE MARESH
    USTDA FOR NATHAN YOUNG AND PATRICIA ARRIAGADA
    OPIC FOR ALISON GERMAK

    E.O. 12958: DECL: 2034/11/30
    TAGS: ECON EFIN EAIR EINV SOCI PREL PINR TRSY IDB IMF JM
    XL
    SUBJECT: AIR JAMAICA SALE: DEAL OR NO DEAL? GOJ CAN'T STAY ON MESSAGE

    REF: KINGSTON 737; KINGSTON 521; KINGSTON 471; KINGSTON 405
    KINGSTON 901; KINGSTON 922; KINGSTON 306

    CLASSIFIED BY: Isiah Parnell, CDA; REASON: 1.4(B), (D)

    Summary And Comment

    -------------------------

    ¶1. (C)  Air Jamaica (AJ), the beleaguered national airline, is days
    away from finding out whether Indigo Partners (operator of Sprit
    Airlines) will be its new owner.  The airline, currently owned by
    the Government of Jamaica (GOJ), is eight months behind the
    original deadline for privatization, but a final decision appears
    imminent.  According to sources involved in the AJ-side of
    negotiations, there is still a real possibility that U.S.-based
    private equity group Indigo Partners may walk away from the deal.
    Unfortunately, AJ has no other offers on the table.  Conflicting
    public messages from GOJ officials are not helping AJ's bargaining
    position; the Minister of Tourism recently told reporters at a
    London tourism conference that the airline is now back on the
    market for sale.  A few days later the Minister of Information told
    local reporters that the sale of AJ is contingent on a desperately
    needed Standby Agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF)
    (Reftel A).  Adding to the confusion, an organization headed by a
    former AJ pilot has promised to picket AJ in Miami on December 15,
    unless Indigo withdraws from negotiations and the GOJ sells the
    airline to employees--at a hefty 20 percent discount from the
    undisclosed terms negotiated by Indigo.  Given Jamaica's dire
    economic situation, it is crucial for the GOJ to offload this loss
    making albatross, which has bled more than USD 1 billion over the
    last decade.   Prime Minister (PM) Bruce Golding's inability to
    coordinate his Jamaica Labour Party (JLP)-led administration to
    speak with one voice on such a vital issue is further evidence of
    his questionable leadership skills.  The GOJ is facing monumental
    financial challenges including multiple rating agency downgrades,
    sluggish IMF negotiations, and falling tax revenue; the inability
    to get on message to ditch AJ is nothing short of mystifying.  End
    Summary and Comment.

    Final Weeks Approach

    ------------------------

    ¶2. (C) The Air Jamaica Privatization Committee (AJPC), supported by
    funding from the World Bank's International Finance Corporation
    (IFC) and the U.S. Trade and Development Agency (USTDA), has spent
    nearly 20 months preparing for the divestiture of AJ, a goal now
    eight months past the original deadline of March 31  (Reftel B).
    Members of the AJPC are scheduled to meet with representatives of
    Indigo in Florida the week of November 30, in an attempt to firm up
    a deal.  The final details of an agreement would still take a few
    more weeks to complete.  Emboffs spoke with Dennis Chung, one of
    the members of the AJPC team, on November 20; he said there were
    still eight issues outstanding between the AJPC and Indigo, but
    only one or two were serious enough to cause a stalemate.  AJPC
    recognizes that it faces a tough negotiator in William Franke,
    Managing Partner of Indigo, who is a veteran of the airline
    industry.  (NOTE: Franke was Chairman and CEO of America West
    airlines for eight yeas and worked to acquire a majority stake in
    Spirit Airlines in 2006 where he serves as Chairman of the Board.
    He also serves as Chairman of Tiger Airways based in Singapore and
    WizzAir based in Hungary.  END NOTE).

    Absence of Alternatives

    ------------------------

    ¶3. (C)  AJ has lost nearly USD 1 billion over the last decade
    (Reftel C and D) including nearly USD 173 million in 2008.  Some
    elements of the GOJ, including PM Bruce Golding, are desperate to
    remove the loss making entity from the GOJ's books, particularly
    before the next budget cycle begins at the end of March.  However,
    Golding does not appear to have the leadership skills needed to
    galvanize support for the sale, even within his own party.  (NOTE:
    The GOJ has been in negotiations with the IMF since July for a
    Standby Agreement; the delay in securing an agreement, coupled with
    multiple recent credit downgrades from international rating
    agencies, is placing greater pressure on the GOJ to get its
    financial house in order and to calm an increasingly skittish
    private sector).  Minister of Tourism Ed Bartlett has been vocal
    about keeping AJ under Jamaican control to support the tourism
    sector by guaranteeing airlift to the island.  The ever politically
    influential Gordon "Butch" Stewart, who owns the Sandals group of
    resorts and for a few years actually ran AJ, also is keen to keep
    the airline in Jamaican hands to bring a ready supply of tourists
    to his all inclusive hotels (Reftel E).

    Airline Will Fail in Employees Hands

    -------------------------------------

    ¶4. (C) There is no doubt that many Jamaicans have an emotional
    connection to AJ; when it appeared that the Trinidad and
    Tobago-owned Caribbean Airlines might purchase AJ, there was a
    vociferous public outcry, often in the form of in newspaper
    editorials.  (Reftel C).  Although U.S. ownership appears more
    palatable to the Jamaican public, there are many who want the
    airline to remain Jamaican owned.  A new organization Mayday Air
    Jamaica led by Wesley Sampson, a former president of the Jamaica
    Airline Pilots Association, is advocating this position.  Sampson
    calls the airline a "national treasure" and "the only resource to
    be handed down to the children of Jamaica in the hopes of a better
    future."  He is asking the GOJ to sell AJ to its employees for a 20
    percent discount on whatever deal it has negotiated with Indigo
    (NOTE:  The terms of a potential agreement with Indigo have
    remained private, but are likely to include the GOJ assuming all of
    AJ current outstanding debt, with a commitment from Indigo to
    adequately recapitalize the airline and retain the AJ brand, END
    NOTE).  In a feeble attempt to disrupt holiday travel, Sampson is
    promising to picket AJ flights in Miami on December 15 if the sale
    goes through to Indigo.  In reality, the AJ employees do not have
    the capital to take control of the airline, nor do they have the
    leadership needed to adequately run it.  Chung, commenting on this
    proposal to Emboffs, said the airline would definitely fail within
    six months if it were taken over by employees.

    AJ In Better Shape, But Faces Stiff Competition

    --------------------------------------------- ----

    ¶5. (C)  AJ CEO Bruce Nobles spoke with Emboff on November 20.  He
    discussed his continuing efforts to restructure the airline, cut
    costs, and position it for sale.  AJ secured a parliamentary
    guarantee on June 11 for a USD 101.8 million loan to finance
    operations until the divestiture was complete, but AJ is still
    waiting on USD 23 million of these funds to be dispersed.
    Meanwhile, AJ is facing increased pressure from Jet Blue which has
    added new flights to Montego Bay and Kingston in the past year.
    Jet Blue also has plans to add new routes from Orlando and Boston
    to Montego Bay in 2010 (Reftel F).  Nobles said the operating loss
    for AJ will be down 70 percent from last year, and the airline will
    be close to a break even point by next year.  He said AJ is now
    managing cash flow pretty well, and revenue per seat mile is up
    five percent this year, while on time performance is up 50 percent
    over last year.  He said advanced bookings are facing challenges,
    as ticket buyers are reluctant to buy seats on an airline with an
    uncertain future or with hopes that fares will fall.

    JLP Needs To Get On Message

    ---------------------------------

    ¶6. (C)  On November 20 during an interview with The Gleaner
    newspaper, Minister of Information Daryl Vaz indicated that the AJ
    divestment was contingent on the signing of a Standby Agreement
    between the GOJ and the IMF (Reftel A).  Nobles tried to distance
    the AJ sale from IMF negotiations by saying it was the first time
    he had hear of this link, adding that he is busy running the
    airline, and is not involved in discussions with the IMF.  The week
    before, Tourism Minister Ed Bartlett, who was at the World Tourism
    Market in London, told the press that AJ was "now back on the
    market for divestment."  Nobles, who also attended the event, said
    he pulled Bartlett aside to clarify that his comment was incorrect,
    as negotiations were still progressing with Indigo.  Even after the
    warning, Bartlett chose to repeat the comment to the press later
    that day.  Nobles told Emboff that Dennis Lalor, the chair of the
    JAPC who is leading negotiations with Indigo, "went berserk"  when
    he heard Bartlett's comments.  Nobles, who has been in three
    previous negotiations with Indigo's Franke, described him as a
    tough negotiator who should not be underestimated.  Nobles said he
    has seen Franke walk away from deals at the very last minute, if he
    thinks deal will be more trouble than it is worth.  Nobles, noted
    that the media back and forth by the GOJ is not helping the talks.

    Comment

    ------------

    ¶7. (C) As the AJ negotiations near their final days it is crucial
    for the JLP to stop equivocating in the press, and fall in line
    behind a single message of selling AJ.  Despite PM Golding's
    personal interest in finalizing this sale, he has not been able to
    keep his party on message, including his own Information Minister.
    Echoing similar comments heard by the private sector, Nobles said
    he is "very concerned" about Golding's leadership.  After a year of
    restructuring at the hands of  Nobles, AJ is in the best position
    to be taken over by a new team and recapitalized.  If the Indigo
    purchase fails or if Nobles, who has held to a hectic schedule
    trying to prepare the airline for sale, should depart, AJ is not
    likely to retain the management/operational improvements it has
    achieved.  AJ has not really made a profit in its 40 years of
    existence, so it is likely to slide back into its old ways of
    racking up multimillion dollar losses.  It will be major political
    success for PM Golding if he can see this deal through, as well as
    a major benefit to the GOJ's fiscal bottom line.  End Comment.
    Parnell

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