The Norwegian Ministry of Trade, Industry and Fisheries has sold its remaining 37.8 million shares in Scandinavian carrier SAS – which represents 9.88 per cent of the airline.
The Norwegian state has been gradually reducing its stake in SAS, with the latest sale finalising its departure from the Sweden-headquartered airline company.
The transaction was structured as an accelerated bookbuilding to institutional investors and gross proceeds for the government were 652 million Swedish crowns ($73.42 million), about 597 million Norwegian crowns, Reuters reports.
A statement from the Ministry said yesterday about the sale: “Norwegian state’s ownership in SAS has been purely commercial. Consequently, it is not expected that the company will be making strategic or operational changes following the transaction.”
The Ministry added that Nordea, Pareto and UBS were joint global co-ordinators and bookrunners for the transaction, while Swedbank and Wiersholm acted as an independent financial adviser and legal counsel respectively to the Norwegian state.
