Kenya Airways Seeks $500M to Expand Fleet After First-Half Loss

BREAKING NEWSAugust 29, 2025 at 10:46 AM UTC

TLDR

Kenya Airways plans to raise at least $500 million by the first quarter of 2026 to modernize and expand its fleet after reporting a sharp first-half loss
The airline, one of Africa’s three largest carriers, posted a pretax loss of 12.17 billion shillings ($94.3 million) for the six months to June 2025
Revenue fell 19% to 74.5 billion shillings, weighed down by the grounding of three Boeing 787-8 Dreamliners for maintenance

Kenya Airways plans to raise at least $500 million by the first quarter of 2026 to modernize and expand its fleet after reporting a sharp first-half loss.

The airline, one of Africa’s three largest carriers, posted a pretax loss of 12.17 billion shillings ($94.3 million) for the six months to June 2025, reversing a profit of 634 million shillings a year earlier. Revenue fell 19% to 74.5 billion shillings, weighed down by the grounding of three Boeing 787-8 Dreamliners for maintenance.

Chief Executive Officer Allan Kilavuka said the planes are expected back in service next year. He added that the funding plan will be presented to shareholders by March 2026.

Kenya Airways had returned to profitability in 2024 with a pretax profit of 5.53 billion shillings, boosted by foreign-exchange gains as the shilling strengthened. On Wednesday, shares fell 19.8% to 4 shillings following the loss announcement, with trading volume more than doubling to 1.29 million shares.

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Key Takeaways

Kenya Airways’ struggle underscores the financial pressure facing African airlines as they balance recovery efforts with costly fleet modernization. The carrier has endured more than a decade of losses, relying on government bailouts and debt restructuring to stay afloat. Its 2024 profit offered a brief rebound, driven largely by currency movements rather than operational improvements. Raising $500 million would represent one of the airline’s largest funding drives, signaling the scale of investment needed to remain competitive with regional rivals Ethiopian Airlines and South African Airways. Fleet renewal is central to cutting operating costs and improving efficiency, but the plan will hinge on access to credit and shareholder support. With high fuel costs and shifting demand patterns, Kenya Airways’ turnaround depends on the execution of the fundraising plan and a stable macroeconomic environment in Kenya.

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Kenya Airways

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