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Lion Air to launch franchise in Vietnam next year
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Batik Air's Boeing 737 take-off at Ngurah Rai International Airport. Lion Air Group will expand its business in Vietnam using its 'Batik Air' brand. (Shutterstock.com/Mike Fuchslocher)
T
he country's biggest airline Lion Air will create a new joint venture airline in Vietnam around the second semester next year using the Batik Air brand, the company’s director has said.
Lion Air president director Edward Sirait said the company was currently negotiating with a local partner in Vietnam.
According to the plans, Lion will take a portion of 49 percent and the remaining 51 percent will be the local partner's equity.
"We will use the 'Batik Air' brand in Vietnam," he said after signing memorandum of understanding (MoU) with BRI in Jakarta on Tuesday.
Previously in 2014, the company wanted to create a new airline in Australia with 100 percent ownership.
Lion Air co-founder Rusdi Kirana said the plan had to be postponed due to ASEAN market expansion.
"The expansion to Malaysia and Thailand needs a lot of planes, so it is not enough to serve the Australian market. If we insisted on operating with a limited number of planes, it will not be able to reach economies of scale," Rusdi added.
Lion Air created Malindo Air in Malaysia in 2012 and continued the expansion with Thai Lion Air in the following year. Both Malindo and Thai Lion have around 10 and 17 percent market shares in their respective countries.(jun)
