SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Singapore Airlines (SIA) (SI:SIAL) raised the price of its cash offer to buy all shares in Tiger Airways (SI:TAHL) that it does not already own to try to seal the privatisation of the budget carrier.
SIA said its final offer price was S$0.45 a share, up from S$0.41 a share in cash for the budget carrier, valuing Tiger at approximately S$1.125 billion ($790 million).
Shareholders also have an option to subscribe for SIA shares at S$11.10 per share. The offer remains conditional upon SIA owning more than 90 percent of Tiger Airways by the new closing date of Jan 22.
Last week SIA had said it owned, controlled or agreed to acquire 74.5 percent shares of Tiger Airways, short of the 90 percent threshold. Minority shareholders, represented by the Securities Investors Association Singapore, had urged SIA to increase the buyout price.
Tiger operates Airbus A320s and was set up by SIA and Singapore's national investment firm, Temasek Holdings, in 2004.
In recent years, facing intense competition and huge losses, it has pulled out of its joint ventures in Australia, the Philippines and Indonesia to concentrated on the Singapore market.
SIA became its majority shareholder in December 2014 after a rights issue.