Fiscal Nepal
First Business News Portal in English from Nepal
KATHMANDU: Nepal’s private carrier Shree Airlines has received approval to operate international flights, marking a major milestone for the company as it moves forward with plans to issue shares to the public at a premium price.
With this approval, Shree Airlines becomes the second private Nepali airline allowed to operate international routes after Buddha Air, which obtained such permission in 2010.
The airline received authorization on April 17 to operate flights on three regional routes: Kathmandu–Delhi–Kathmandu, Kathmandu–Kolkata–Kathmandu, and Kathmandu–Dhaka–Kathmandu.
Shree Airlines currently operates a fleet of 18 aircraft, including 17 airplanes and helicopters. Its fleet includes seven Dash-8 Q400 aircraft, three CRJ-200 jets, six Russian MI-series helicopters, and two B3E helicopters. The airline runs domestic flights from Kathmandu to major destinations such as Dhangadhi, Surkhet, Nepalgunj, Bhairahawa, Pokhara, Chitwan, and Biratnagar, along with mountain flights and charter services.
The company is primarily owned by investor Sudhir Mittal, who holds 99.98 percent of its shares. It was founded in 1998 by late industrialist Banwari Lal Mittal with helicopter services and later expanded into fixed-wing operations. The airline has also operated international charter flights for United Nations missions and the World Food Programme.
Shree Airlines was converted into a public company in 2023 and is currently preparing to issue an Initial Public Offering (IPO). The company has applied to the Securities Board of Nepal (SEBON) to issue 6.3 million shares at a price of NPR 200 per unit, including a premium of NPR 100. The total issue size is expected to be NPR 1.26 billion.
According to financial data, the airline has generated over NPR 15.63 billion in revenue from fiscal year 2077/78 to mid-fiscal year 2081/82. In the first six months of the current fiscal year alone, it reported revenue of NPR 2.53 billion.
The airline currently holds the third-largest share in Nepal’s domestic aviation market in terms of passenger numbers and has also been providing charter, cargo, and air ambulance services.
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