It was one of the first big moves made by Premier Jim Prentice, not long after he was elected leader of the governing Progressive Conservatives, but the province’s efforts to sell the government’s fleet of aircraft have not yet been successful.
In December, the Alberta government put four airplanes up for sale online – after Prentice pledged to get rid of the aircraft in the fall.
In the nearly six weeks since, there have been no bids offered for the fleet. The asking price for the four planes is $11 million.
“We have every confidence that the planes will sell,” government spokesperson Eoin Kenny said.
The government said it’s too early to consider lowering the price, although bidding closes on February 24.
“This is a serious purchasing decision made by a corporation or by an individual, and again, it’s not unusual for it to take a certain amount of time,” Kenny said.
Aviation consultant Ken Beleshko said the fleet is harder to sell than the province is saying, as supply and demand is not on the province’s side.
“The asking price is a little high, so no surprises,” Beleshko said.
“There’s quite a few aircraft that are on the market, especially out of the United States.”
Beleshko said the province may have to lower the price, or consider leasing the planes in an effort to make some money off of the planes in the meantime.
“Many companies are upgrading to newer fleets, newer types of aircraft,” Beleshko said.
Kenny said while there are no bids, there have been enquiries.
“We’ve had more than 40 enquiries, some from as far away as India,” Kenny said.
“Usually the bids come in towards the end latter end of the bid process.”
It’s not clear whether the price could drop if there are no offers by the time bidding closes.
With files from Bill Fortier
