A government rescue plan for Malaysia Airlines (MAS) is expected to be unveiled in six to 12 months.
The disclosure came from Azman Mokhtar, managing director of sovereign wealth fund Khazanah, the airline’s biggest shareholder.
“It’s an important issue. It takes into account both the national interest and taxpayers’ money,” the Financial Times reported him as saying in Kuala Lumpur. “We are exploring all options.”
The carrier has enough cash to remain operating for about 12 months, he said, amid signs that Malaysian passenger traffic has started to stabilise after the initially disastrous impact of missing flight MH370.
Khazanah owns 69.4% of the airline, which was already struggling amid competition from low-cost carriers even before the disappearance of the Boeing 777 carrying 239 people three months ago on a flight from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing.
MAS last month reported a 58% increase in net losses for the three months to March 31. Bookings from China – one of the airline’s most important destinations and sources of business – fell by 60%.