Just like Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt, the VirgLand relationship has come to a sad end, with Air New Zealand selling the last of its Virgin Australia shares this week.
The Kiwi carrier sold its remaining stake in the Aussie airline for AU$65.7 million in an off-market transaction to the Nashan Group – the same investors that purchased 19.98 percent of Virgin in June this year.
The sale of the final shares comes seven months after Air New Zealand announced its decision to part with Virgin Australia in order to focus on its growth.
At the time, Air New Zealand’s Chairman, Tony Carter, said selling off the shares would open the airline up to “alternate uses of capital currently deployed in Virgin Australia”.
He didn’t elaborate on what these would be, however, the airline has spent the last 12 months focusing on expanding its network, growing its share of the Aussie market and investing in new inflight products.
Despite the share split, Air New Zealand’s Chief Executive, Christopher Luxon, said the carrier would continue to work with Virgin Australia on its Tasman alliance and provide customers “with the most comprehensive trans-Tasman network”.
Scoop.co.nz reports that Air New Zealand had spent some AU$373 million in building up and maintain Virgin Australia since becoming a key stakeholder in 2011.
