CGI to take control of Southend Airport

ADS Advance

06 March 2024

Owners of London Southend Airport (LSA), Carlisle-based Esken (formerly Stobart Group), have agreed a restructuring plan with Cyrus Capital Partners, which will see US private equity Carlyle Global Infrastructure Fund (CGI) secure control of the airport.

This will proceed on a consensual basis, rather than through a contested court process, which could be potentially destructive for all stakeholders. The terms of the recapitalisation proposal for LSA involves a conversion of the convertible loan of £193.75 million due to CGI into an 82.5% stake in LSA and a similar conversion of the £24.3 million debt due by LSA to Esken Aviation Limited (EAL), a wholly owned subsidiary of the Company, into a 17.5% stake.

Funding of the proposal agreed with the board of LSA includes an initial £5 million of short-term unsecured bridge funding to the airport through to the conclusion of the process as part of a commitment of £32 million of new funding to secure the future growth of the airport.

[Read more: ADS Advance - CGI to take control of Southend Airport]