AviLease eyes local, foreign capital to support aviation sector: CEO

Edward O'Byrne CEO of AviLease 

The Public Investment Fund (PIF)-backed AviLease seeks to attract local and foreign capital to finance infrastructure and support the Saudi aviation sector in light of the opportunities available in the Kingdom, CEO Edward O'Byrne told Asharq News.

He added that half of the aircraft orders are received by companies financed by lessors such as AviLease, indicating that annual investments are approximately $250 billion, and Saudi Arabia alone dominates $35 billion of the total amount.

The growth witnessed by the Kingdom in light of Vision 2030 requires the delivery of around 300 aircraft from 2024 until the end of this decade, with investments of nearly $35 billion, O'Byrne said.

He indicated that there is an opportunity to finance these assets for local airlines such as Saudia, Riyadh Air, and Flynas.

AviLease ended 2023 with a fleet of 168 commercial aircraft after starting the year with only three aircraft, the top executive said, indicating that it has expanded significantly, and it is focusing this year on building cadres, operations, and systems to continue expansion.

The aircraft lessor contributes to developing the financing environment, as it is not only involved in developing its cadres, but also cooperates with local lenders and airlines in employment. In addition, the firm formed a partnership with a local university and will sign another one soon to employ new graduates, as it looks forward to employing talented young Saudi males and females in the aviation financing sector.

In June 2022, PIF launched AviLease to focus on sale-and-leaseback transactions (SALTs) with airlines as well as fleet management services and direct orders from aircraft manufacturers, according to data available on Argaam.
 

In December 2023, AviLease signed a strategic MoU with SDH Wings International Leasing Ltd. to supply up to 20 aircraft equipped with new technologies.