HNA Group steht vor dem Verkauf

Wie die Nachrichtenagentur Bloomberg unter der Headline „China Nears Takeover of HNA Group as Virus Hits Business“ berichtet, leidet der massiv verschuldete Mischkonzern unter den Folgen des Covid-19. Der macht es dem Konzern, der in Deutschland u.a. 82,5 % des Hunsrück-Airports Hahn hält, beinahe unmöglich, seine finanziellen Verpflichtungen zu erfüllen.

Der Bloomberg-Beitrag: „China plans to take over indebted conglomerate HNA Group Co. and sell off its airline assets, the most dramatic step to date by the state to contain the deepening economic damage from the deadly coronavirus outbreak. HNA-related shares rose.
The government of Hainan, the southern island province where HNA is based, is in talks to seize control of the group after the contagion hurt its ability to meet financial obligations, according to people familiar with the plans. The once little-known airline operator shot to prominence between 2016 and 2017 after a debt-fueled acquisition spree saw it become the leading shareholder of iconic companies such as Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. and Deutsche Bank AG, while paying top dollar for properties from Manhattan to Hong Kong.

China is under growing strain from the shutdowns imposed to curb the coronavirus, which has killed more than 2,000 people. As President Xi Jinping seeks to prevent the short-term economic pain from turning into a slump that outlasts the contagion, his government is considering direct cash infusions or mergers to stabilize the hobbled airline industry, while the People’s Bank of China said it will work on supporting domestic consumption. A takeover of a high-profile company like HNA would take those efforts to a new level.

An announcement could be made as soon as Thursday, though talks could drag on or fall apart, the people said, asking not to be identified as the discussions are confidential. Under the emerging plan, China would sell the bulk of HNA’s airline assets to the country’s three biggest carriers -- Air China Ltd., China Southern Airlines Co. and China Eastern Airlines Corp., according to the people. HNA-backed Suparna Airlines is also likely to be unloaded to the Jiangsu provincial government, the people said. Discussions with the airlines are continuing, they said.

A representative for HNA declined to comment. Calls and messages to Hainan government officials and press officers at the three state-run airlines weren’t returned. Suparna representatives weren’t reachable and the Jiangsu provincial government didn’t immediately respond to an emailed query.

HNA has been slimming down after a $40 billion buying binge left it with one of the highest levels of corporate debt in China. In the past year, the group has been returning to its aviation roots, culminating in a November announcement to divide its businesses into airlines, aviation leasing and airports, with the rest being lumped under its “non-aviation asset management” unit. But its focus on aviation and tourism backfired as the virus epidemic led to an unprecedented drop in flights in and out of China.

“HNA is, even by Chinese standards, a sprawling and indebted conglomerate, and the collapse in Chinese airline activity due to the outbreak of Covid-19 has apparently pushed it to effective bankruptcy,” London-based Agency Partners analysts led by Nick Cunningham wrote in a note after Bloomberg’s report.“

Nach den Plänen der Regierung in Peking könnte der Großteil von Hainan Airlines an die drei größten chinesischen Fluggesellschaften Air China, China Southern und China Eastern Airlines, verkauft werden. Der Geschäftsbereich HNA Tourism ist an 19 Fluggesellschaften beteiligt.

In Europa hatte HNA bereits etliche Beteiligungen abgestoßen, so u.a. die Anteile am Schweizer Duty-Free-Betreiber Dufry und die Beteiligung an der Gategroup, die, wie DMM berichtete, LSG Skychefs von der Lufthansa übernimmt. Daneben gehören HNA auch Anteile an der Swissport sowie SR Technics. Auch diese Beteiligungen stehen wohl zur Disposition. Zeitweise hielt HNA sogar knapp 10 % Anteile an der Deutschen Bank, hat sich dort aber auch zurückgezogen. Im Februar 2018 hatte S&P Global das Bonitäts-Rating von HNA auf CCC+ abgesenkt, sprich, es sind nur bei sehr günstiger Entwicklung keine Ausfälle zu erwarten. Quelle: Bloomberg / DMM