Go First bidders propose conditional payments

The outlook for Go First is uncertain as both prospective buyers have submitted proposals with payments linked to the resolution of a lawsuit against engine manufacturer Pratt & Whitney. Also, according to information sourced by CNBC-TV18, the upfront payment in the proposals is reportedly insufficient to cover the costs of insolvency resolution.

Two bids have been submitted for Go First - one from a consortium led by SpiceJet chief Ajay Singh and Nishant Pitti from Busy Bee Airways, and the second from Sharjah-based Sky One. Ajay Singh and Busy Bee Airways have jointly submitted a bid of 16 billion rupees ($193.10 million) for the airline, bankers said.

As per sources, both the Ajay Singh-Nishant Pitti consortium and Sky One, the potential buyers, have not proposed a substantial initial payment to address the Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process (CIRP) expenses of the airline. These estimated costs, around Rs 600 crore, according to sources, hold precedence under India's Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) waterfall mechanism for dues recovery.

The channel further reported that the Ajay Singh-Nishant Pitti consortium proposed Rs 290 crore upfront and committed to fully repay financial creditors from Pratt & Whitney arbitration proceeds. Sky One offered Rs 410 crore upfront to lenders and 25 percent of arbitration proceeds to creditors.