Jet acquires Air Sahara finally
	Mumbai: After protracted negotiations, Jet Airways has finally acquired Air Sahara for a consideration of Rs. 1,450 crore, seven months after initiating arbitration hearings of the deal that was earlier entered into in January 2006. Addressing the media, Jet Airways chairman Naresh Goyal said: "It is a good deal, which is commercially a very good one for our shareholders. There is no change in our thinking from the position of January 2006 and, in fact, it is 40 per cent cheaper than the deal signed then." The earlier deal was for a share purchase agreement of around Rs. 2,200 crore. Largest private airline At the press conference, Harish Salve, counsel for Jet Airways, said: "Jet and Sahara have resolved all the differences amicably and we have an agreement." The takeover will create the largest private airline in the country having a fleet size in excess of 80 aircraft and around 42 per cent of the market share. Under the new offer, approved by the arbitrators, all shares of Air Sahara will be transferred to Jet Airways for Rs. 1,450 crore. This includes Rs. 500 crore paid by Jet Airways last year for the Air Sahara shares. Now it will pay Rs. 400 crore on or before April 20 and Rs. 550 crore in four interest-free equal instalments from March 2008 to March 2011. The deal signed on January 19, 2006 lapsed in June that year following Jet Airways' "failure" to secure regulatory approvals. It had by then paid Rs. 180 crore for revival of Air Sahara and deposited Rs. 1,500 crore in an escrow account for the acquisition. The Bombay High Court, however, allowed Jet Airways to withdraw the amount from the escrow account against a bank guarantee of the same amount last September. Arbitration hearings in the case were on since September 2006. Earlier this week, the arbitration tribunal began the final hearing. The tribunal was headed by British judge Lord Stein and had the former Chief Justice of India, S.P. Bharucha (representing Jet Airways), and the former Judge of the apex court, Jeevan Reddy (for Air Sahara) as members.