Emirates Airline has announced the suspension of all flight operations in and out of Nigeria over an unpaid sum of $85million trapped in the country and unavailability of foreign exchange.
A press statement issued by the airline on Thursday said it will halt its operations indefinitely starting from September 1, 2022.
The international airline, which had earlier cut down on its weekly number of flights into Lagos from 11 to seven, said the suspension will continue till it recovers its trapped funds in Nigeria.
It said the figure has been rising by more than $US10 million every month, as the ongoing operational costs of its 11 weekly flights to Lagos and five to Abuja continued to accumulate, adding that the trapped funds were urgently needed to meet operational costs and maintain the commercial viability of its services to Nigeria.
“We simply cannot continue to operate at the current level in the face of mounting losses, especially in the challenging post COVID-19 climate. Emirates did try to stem the losses by proposing to pay for fuel in Nigeria in Naira, which would have at least reduced one element of our ongoing costs, however this request was denied by the supplier.
“Emirates has tried every avenue to address our ongoing challenges in repatriating funds from Nigeria, and we have made considerable efforts to initiate dialogue with the relevant authorities for their urgent intervention to help find a viable solution.
“Regrettably there has been no progress. Therefore, Emirates has taken the difficult decision to suspend all flights to and from Nigeria, effective 1st September 2022, to limit further losses and impact on our operational costs that continue to accumulate in the market.
“We sincerely regret the inconvenience caused to our customers, however the circumstances are beyond our control at this stage. We will be working to help impacted customers make alternative travel arrangements wherever possible.
“Should there be any positive developments in the coming days regarding Emirates’ blocked funds in Nigeria, we will of course re-evaluate our decision. We remain keen to serve Nigeria, and our operations provide much needed connectivity for Nigerian travellers, providing access to trade and tourism opportunities to Dubai, and to our broader network of over 130 destinations,” the statement added.
