Eustace: Is it going to be business as usual for LIAT?

As LIAT and Caribbean Star look to conclude the negotiations on their new business plan, opposition leader Arhnim Eustace is wary that the new direction may result in business as usual for the Caribbean airline.

Liat and Caribbean Star called off their plan to merge the airlines and have opted to instead have Liat purchase the assets of Caribbean Star.{{more}}

Earlier this year, the two companies began operating a shared reservations system as a stepping stone to their merger plan.

However they have since opted instead, for Liat to acquire the assets of Caribbean Star.

This is in exchange for 35% ownership of Liat, by Caribbean Star’s owner Allen Stanford.

LIAT officials have been quoted as saying that the new plan made better business sense, claiming that the previous plan would have taken months to properly sort out.

“Conceptually when you going into a question of a merger it assumes that Caribbean Star will bring to the table certain skills and resources, that Liat will bring to the table… and the synergies arising out of those will give rise to a restructured airline, which had a chance of making a profit,” Eustace said. Eustace said that Liat has failed over the years and is constantly subsidized and he is worried that if LIAT continues business as usual, without major restructuring there will be reason for concern.

“Unless there is a substantial change in the method of operation with a profit orientation … we are not going to get a profit table line and we will all continue to give subsidy to Liat,” Eustace said.

Prime Minister Dr Ralph Gonsalves has continually stated that restructuring is part of the way forward for Liat.

He however reemphasized last Monday that to have one airline in the sky continues to be the objective.