17 Apr 2023 08:00 CEST

Issuer

SAS AB

SAS AB ("SAS" or the "Company") announces that it will not be utilizing the
second tranche of its debtor-in-possession ("DIP") term loan during the second
quarter of fiscal year 2023, as previously communicated. Following a stronger
than expected development of SAS' liquidity position during the winter, SAS has
no near-term need for additional liquidity through the second tranche of the DIP
term loan. SAS may, depending on the continued development of SAS' liquidity
position, continue discussions with Apollo Global Management regarding access to
the second tranche of the DIP term loan at a later stage during the chapter 11
process. In the meantime, the Company will continue to pursue other normal
course financing initiatives that if closed, will supplement the Company's
liquidity at a lower all-in cost than a near-term utilization of the second
tranche of the DIP term loan.

On August 14, 2022, SAS entered into a DIP term loan agreement for USD 700
million (the equivalent of approximately SEK 7.0 billion), with funds managed by
Apollo Global Management ("Apollo"). DIP financing is a specialized type of
bridge financing used by businesses that are restructuring through a chapter 11
process. The DIP term loan agreement is divided in two tranches of equal size,
of which SAS utilized the first tranche in September 2022.

Following a stronger than expected development of SAS' liquidity position during
the winter, SAS has no near-term need for additional liquidity through the
second tranche of the DIP term loan. The Company sees opportunities to
supplement its liquidity position at a lower all-in cost than a near-term
utilization of the second tranche of the DIP term loan. As previously disclosed
on April 6, 2023, SAS also started a competitive and broad equity solicitation
process that is expected to determine additional potential sources of
capitalization for the business. Launching the equity solicitation process is a
critical component to creating a path for the Company to exit chapter 11. SAS
has therefore decided to pause the on-going discussions with Apollo to access
the second tranche of the DIP term loan, in which certain conditions in the DIP
term loan agreement remain to be met for the second tranche to be available. The
fee structure of the DIP term loan agreement remains unchanged, and SAS will not
incur any additional fees as a result of its decision not to utilize the second
tranche of the DIP term loan during the second quarter of fiscal year 2023.

SAS currently expects to emerge from its chapter 11 process during the latter
part of the second half of 2023 and may, depending on the development of SAS'
liquidity position, continue discussions with Apollo regarding access to the
second tranche of the DIP term loan at a later stage during the chapter 11
process.

Additional Information About the Chapter 11 Process and Implementation of SAS
FORWARD
On July 5, 2022, to accelerate the implementation of its comprehensive business
transformation plan SAS FORWARD, SAS announced that it had voluntarily filed for
chapter 11 in the U.S., a well-established and flexible legal framework for
restructuring businesses with operations in multiple jurisdictions. Through this
process, SAS aims to reach agreements with key stakeholders, restructure the
Company's debt obligations, reconfigure its aircraft fleet, and emerge with a
significant capital injection.

At the outset of its restructuring process, the Company's SAS FORWARD plan
envisioned raising at least SEK 9.5 billion in new equity capital as well as
reducing or converting SEK 20 billion of debt (of which a majority is on-balance
sheet debt), including state hybrid notes, commercial hybrid notes, Swiss bonds,
term loans from states, aircraft lease liabilities and maintenance contract
obligations and other executory contract obligations.  The Company's actual
capital raise is dependent upon the factors previously listed.

SAS targets to complete its court-supervised process in the U.S. in the latter
part of the second half of 2023.

Additional information about the Company's voluntary chapter 11 process is
available on the Company's dedicated restructuring website,
https://sasgroup.net/transformation. Court filings and other documents related
to the chapter 11 process in the U.S. are available on a separate website
administered by SAS' claims agent, Kroll Restructuring Administration LLC, at
https://cases.ra.kroll.com/SAS. Information is also available by calling (844)
242-7491 (U.S./Canada) or +1 (347) 338-6450 (International), as well as by email
at SASInfo@ra.kroll.com.

Advisors
Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP is serving as global legal counsel, and Mannheimer
Swartling Advokatbyrå AB is serving as Swedish legal counsel to SAS.  Seabury
Securities LLC and Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB are serving as investment
bankers, Seabury is also serving as restructuring advisor. FTI Consulting serves
as financial advisor.

For further information, please contact:
SAS Press office, +46 8 797 29 44
Investor relations, +46 70 997 7070

SAS, Scandinavia's leading airline, with main hubs in Copenhagen, Oslo and
Stockholm, is flying to destinations in Europe, USA and Asia. Spurred by a
Scandinavian heritage and sustainable values, SAS aims to be the global leader
in sustainable aviation. We will reduce total carbon emissions by 25 percent by
2025, by using more sustainable aviation fuel and our modern fleet with fuel
-efficient aircraft. In addition to flight operations, SAS offers ground
handling services, technical maintenance and air cargo services. SAS is a
founder member of the Star AllianceT, and together with its partner airlines
offers a wide network worldwide. Learn more at https://www.sasgroup.net

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
The press release does not constitute an offer to sell or issue, or the
solicitation of an offer to buy or acquire, or subscribe for, shares or any
other financial instruments in SAS.

This press release contains forward-looking statements that reflect SAS' current
view of future events as well as financial and operational development. These
statements may include, without limitation, any statements preceded by, followed
by or including words such as "intend", "assess", "expect", "may", "plan",
"estimate" and other expressions involving indications or predictions regarding
future development or trends and other words and terms of similar meaning or the
negative thereof. These forward-looking statements have been prepared for
illustrative purposes only, are not based on historical facts, are not
guarantees of future performance, reflect SAS' beliefs and expectations, and are
subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and assumptions and other
factors that could cause actual events and performance to differ materially from
any expected future events or performance expressed or implied by such forward
-looking statements. As a result of these risks, uncertainties, assumptions and
other factors, you should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking
statements as a prediction of actual future events or otherwise. The information
contained in this press release is subject to change without notice and, except
as required by applicable law, SAS does not assume any responsibility or
obligation to update publicly or review any of the forward-looking statements
contained in it, whether as a result of new information, future events or
otherwise. Nothing in this press release constitutes or should be construed as
constituting a profit forecast.


587715_Update_on_SAS_debtor_in_possession_term_loan.pdf

Source

SAS AB

Provider

Oslo Børs Newspoint

Company Name

SAS AB

ISIN

SE0003366871

Symbol

SASNO

Market

Oslo Børs