Kazakh carrier Air Astana plans London listing

FE Team | Published: January 12, 2024 23:34:16

Kazakh carrier Air Astana has outlined its intention to list on the London and Kazakhstan stock exchanges this year, reports flightglobal.com.
An IPO has long been on the agenda for Air Astana, which is 51 per cent owned by Kazakhstan's sovereign wealth fund Samruk-Kaznya and 49 per cent by BAE Systems.
The airline group, which operates network carrier Air Astana and fast-growing low-cost operator FlyArystan, has today formally announced plans for a dual listing in which it hopes to raise gross proceeds of around $120 million.
Air Astana says an IPO bookbuilding, including price range announcement, and roadshow will launch around the end of January pending final approval from the group.
Air Astana Group chief executive Peter Foster said: "We are confident that the initial public offering will accelerate the next stage of growth for the Air Astana Group, and we see significant opportunities to thicken our existing routes and expand into new geographic areas, supported by our continued fleet expansion plan and initiatives to increase operational flexibility."
The airline group, which operates a fleet of 49 aircraft, generated a net profit of $78 million on revenues of just over $1 billion in 2022, a second consecutive year in the black since the pandemic. Revenue and profit was running ahead of prior year levels after the first nine months of 2023.