Kenya’s Treasury has now cleared more than half of Kenya Airways’ guaranteed debt with a fresh Sh6.9 billion payment in the quarter that ended in December.
The latest payment means that the Treasury has offset Sh53.7 billion out of a Sh69.9 billion KQ debt it took over last year as part of a wider strategy to restructure the operations of the national carrier.
The loan was tapped from the USA Export-Import Bank (EXIM) in 2017.
“During the quarter ending December 2023, the national government paid Sh6.9 billion in guaranteed debt on behalf of Kenya Airways. The payments consisted of Sh5.5 billion as principal payments and Sh1.4 billion as interest,” the Treasury indicated.
In six months of operations to the end of June, KQ reported an operating profit but remained in loss territory due to the exchange rate depreciation.
The national carrier has a moratorium on debt service for the amount owed to the government including the novated debt. At the end of June last year, KQ had total outstanding liabilities of Sh302 billion including outstanding claims by the government on account of its past and ongoing support.
