The divestment of Air Jamaica has been delayed until the end of June, according to Don Wehby, the minister with responsibility for the government-owned airline.
Although the government failed to meet the March 31 deadline, "significant progress has been made in the privatization effort," according to Wehby, who holds a post with the Ministry of Finance and Public Services.
A meeting is set for mid-April with an international airline group, which has made an "indicative offer" for Air Jamaica, Wehby said.
"We anticipate that we will be able to advance the negotiating process quite substantially at that meeting," the minister said.
After its decision last year to privatize the national airline, the government of Jamaica appointed the International Finance Corp., the private sector arm of the World Bank Group, to serve as lead advisors on the project.
The government then appointed a privatization committee to work with the IFC and to recommend a way forward.
The investor will be selected based on criteria that include financial stability and the ability to adequately capitalize the airline.
Whoever does purchase Air Jamaica must maintain the airline's Jamaican identity and provide reliable airlift on certain key routes from and to Jamaica.
The airline currently incurs more than $150 million in losses per year and has outstanding loans of more than $600 million.
