Jazeera Airways shareholders approve cash dividend for 2017

Chairman Marwan Boodai said dedicated terminal at Kuwait airport will open in May

A Jazeera Airlines Airbus A-320 plane taxies towards the departure gates at Kuwait International Airport. The Boursa Kuwait-listed budget carrier said shareholders approved a dividend of 35 fils per share on Thursday. Gustavo Ferrari / AP Photo
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Jazeera Airways, Kuwait’s publicly listed low-cost carrier, said its shareholders approved the board’s recommendation for a cash dividend distribution of 35 fils per share.

The dividend represents 35 per cent of a share’s nominal value, the company said in a statement to the Boursa Kuwait, where its shares are listed, on Thursday.

Chairman Marwan Boodai added in the statement that Jazeera Airways’ new terminal at Kuwait International Airport would open next month.

“2018 will be no less exciting than 2017,” Mr Boodai said. “We’ve launched non-stop flights to the Indian cities of Ahmedabad and Kochi, and I’m pleased to announce that our very own dedicated terminal will receive its first passengers by mid-May following a record construction period of only 11-months.

“This is the first terminal owned by a non-government-owned airline, and it is a testament to the Government of Kuwait’s belief in empowering the private sector to have an active role in Kuwait’s development plan Vision 2035.”

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In February, Jazeera Airways reported a 24 per cent drop in full year net profit attributed to a one-off 2.4 million Kuwaiti dinar transfer from foreign currency reserves “that were reclassified to statement of income”, the carrier said.

Net profit for 2017 dropped to 8.2m Kuwaiti dinars ($27.3 million) from the previous year. The company also reported a 12.1 per cent decline in operating profit, while operating revenues increased 7.3 percent to KD56.5m in 2017.

On Thursday the company cited 11.2 per cent growth in flown passengers, 6.7 per cent growth in load factor to 73.9 per cent, and a high on-time performance of 93 per cent, as highlights of the year.