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Ryanair reports record loss

Ryanair reported a record annual after-tax loss of €815 million after Covid-19 restrictions forced it to scrap over 80 per cent of flights, but the budget airline said there were sign ryanair0121

s the recovery had begun.

Europe’s largest discount airline flew 27.5 million passengers in its financial year ended March, down from 149 million the previous year in what it called the most challenging in its history.

The airline reiterated its forecast that passenger numbers for the current fiscal year would be towards the lower end in the range of 80 million to 120 million passengers. It expects to fly just five million to six million passengers in the April-June quarter.

Ryanair said it was impossible to give a formal profit outlook for the year, but added that it “cautiously believed that the likely outcome for FY22 is currently close to breakeven” if the EU vaccine rollout remains on track. Chief executive Michael O’Leary said in a pre-recorded presentation that a recent strong increases in weekly bookings suggested the “recovery has already begun” with bookings climbing from around 500,000 per week in early April to 1.5 million per week now.

Zetland buys Morrison Hotl

Zetland Capital, a London-based private equity firm, has bought the Morrison hotel in Dublin. No price was disclosed but it was reported in March that the deal was expected to be worth more than €65 million.

The 145-bedroom boutique hotel on Dublin’s quays was owned by Russian investor Elena Baturina, who bought it from Nama in 2012 for €22 million.

This is second major Dublin hotel sale announced in past 10 days. The 157-bed Moxy Dublin City hotel, on Sackville Place just off O’Connell Street, was earlier this month sold by the Spitzer family’s Midwest Holding group for €35 million to the MHL Hotel Collection.

Nama took control of the Morrison after it acquired the loans of its developer, the late Hugh O’Regan. The John Rocha-designed property was the first hotel sold by Nama after the crash.

Cabinet to ease international travel curbs

The prospect of vaccinated people being able to fly in and out of Ireland by late summer will be advanced as Cabinet ministers are to approve a major easing of restrictions on michealmartin0520 travel.

The Government will tomorrow approve a plan to remove most, if not all, European countries from the mandatory hotel quarantine list as part of a move to adopt the EU Digital Green Certificate..

While there is a degree of concern around the Indian variant of Covid-19, Ireland’s vaccination programme is sufficiently advanced to allow the country to take this step.

The EU deadline for adoption of the green cert is June 26th, and, while individual countries will have latitude as to when they will apply it, the Government appears keen to be ready in time for the first wave.

By doing so, international travel within a single EU zone will be possible by late July or early August, senior Government sources said.

Tetrarch plans Mt. Juliet investment

Tetrarch Capital is planning to invest a furter €2m in its Mount Juliet Estate to facilitate the attraction if international visitors.

The investmentadds to €20m which the group has alrady invested in the resort, since 2014.

Tetrarch is aso planning to build 11 more luxury homes on the estate, adding to the 108 existing residences.

Indoor dining set for July

Indoor dining and drinking are to return in July under Government plans, Tánaiste Leo Varadkar has said. restaurant

Responding to calls in the Dáil for a detailed plan as to how large cities will operate this summer, Mr Varadkar said local authorities are providing more bins and public toilets.

“I welcome that. We need more of that from local authorities,” he said.

While outdoor dining and drinking will be allowed from early June, there is now increasing certainty around the return of indoor hospitality earlier than had previously been envisaged.

Responding to questions about hotels being allowed to serve indoors from June 2, Mr Varadkar said he knows this is annoying for restaurant owners. However, he expected this disparity would only be in place for a few weeks.