19th Mar 2021 13:58
(Alliance News) - International Consolidated Airlines Group SA's British Airways is considering selling its headquarters next to Heathrow Airport, the Financial Times reported on Friday.
The newspaper said BA is planning the sale to allow its head office staff to split their time permanently between home and office working after the pandemic.
The airline has hired property consultants to evaluate a sale of the sprawling Waterside complex on the outskirts of Heathrow airport in west London, which houses 2,000 staff, according to an internal email.
"Many of us are based at Waterside and it's not clear if such a large office will play a part in our future," BA's director of people, Stuart Kennedy, wrote in the message to staff. He added it is still "very early days" and a sale was just one option on the table.
BA paid GBP200 million for the land and construction of Waterside in the 1990s.
https://www.ft.com/content/9ec21998-1c56-4e47-b836-203314fe710e
Shares in IAG were down 4.1% in London on Friday afternoon at 207.00 pence each.
IAG suffered a pre-tax loss of EUR7.8 billion in 2020 as demand for travel collapsed due to the virus crisis.
On Thursday, IAG said it is planning to offer a total of EUR1.00 billion in bonds.
The proceeds will be used for general corporate purposes, including strengthening IAG's balance sheet and increasing liquidity, helping the group to weather a more prolonged downturn in air travel due to the virus pandemic and providing the operational and strategic flexibility to take advantage of a recovery in demand, it said.
By Paul McGowan; [email protected]
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