Judge Roberto Ayoub gave the group until Wednesday to prove it has the funds to buy the airline and clarify its proposal to issue debentures that would finance part of the deal. He left the door open for another auction or for TGV to find additional investors, saying others could take part in the transaction if they joined forces with the employee group.
If TGV meets the conditions, it will then have three days to inject $75 million in Varig, which has been operating under bankruptcy protection for the past year. But if it fails to prove it has the cash to buy Varig, and no other buyer emerges, the 79-year-old airline could be forced into liquidation, according to Brazilian bankruptcy law.
A decade ago, Varig commanded nearly half of Brazil's aviation market. By the end of May its market share had plunged to 14.4 percent, compared with 45.6 percent for TAM and 33.6 percent for Gol.Yahoo! News/ Reuters
.jpg)
Comment Preview