Kathmandu, November 13

Nepal Airlines Corporation (NAC) has published a notice of ‘Direct Negotiation’ for auction of Boeing 757- 200, 9N-ACB with a steep discount of around Rs 390 million.

After failing to receive any proposal even after publishing the auction notice twice — in June and again in August — NAC had decided to hold discussions with stakeholders to phase out the Boeing aircraft. After a gap of almost two months, NAC has now decided to sell the aircraft at heavy discount.

Publishing a notice on Tuesday, NAC has offered the aircraft named Karnali for minimum price of Rs 485 million. Prior to this, NAC had set Rs 875 million, excluding taxes, as the minimum bid for the 32-year-old aircraft.

As per the published notice, interested bidders can submit their sealed proposal to NAC by midnight on November 27. The proposal can be submitted by either an airline company or an individual.

According to the notice, while submitting the proposal, the interested parties should attach a bank voucher or bank guarantee letter of $5,000 or equivalent Nepalis rupees valid for at least 60 days from the last date of submission of proposal as a commitment fee.

Karnali, which was purchased in 1987, has the capacity to carry 190 passengers. Prior to this, NAC had sold its first Boeing 757-200 — 9N-ACA aircraft — through auction to a Nepali airline company called BB Airways. However, the aircraft is still grounded at TIA. The first Boeing had touched down in Kathmandu in 1972. With a capacity to carry 123 passengers, it connected Kathmandu with regional destinations and remained in service until 1993.