The government is moving SriLankan Airlines to a public-private partnership (PPP) model while the loss-making national carrier has separately requested an additional Rs.10 billion to continue operations, Aviation Minister Anura Kuranathilake said in a televised interview reported by Newswire on Thursday.
The minister said maintaining the airline through taxpayer funds had become unsustainable. Roughly Rs.90 billion is earmarked for the carrier up to 2030, at close to Rs.30 billion a year, on top of the fresh Rs.10 billion request.
“This cannot continue forever. It is unfair because even people who have never seen an aircraft are contributing through their taxes to maintain the airline,” Kuranathilake said.
The government has decided against full privatisation and intends to retain a degree of state ownership, citing the strategic value of a national carrier during emergencies. A dedicated institution will be tasked with running the investor process, the minister said, expressing confidence that investment commitments could be secured within 2026.
The PPP announcement marks a fresh structural pivot for the loss-making carrier, which earlier this month had Rs.91 billion of legacy debt restructured by the Treasury and is searching for a new chief executive from a four-candidate shortlist. The minister did not name the institution that will lead the investor search, the equity stake the state plans to retain, or the deadline for the Rs.10 billion top-up disbursement.
Source: Newswire.
