The Ethiopian Airlines Group has formally resubmitted a request for a capital increase to the executives of Ethiopian Investment Holdings (EIH), reviving a proposal first lodged three years ago, according to sources familiar with the matter.
Sources within EIH told The Reporter that the airline’s board has approved the renewed request and forwarded it to the EIH board, where it is currently under review.
The exact size of the capital increase being sought has not been disclosed, with officials declining to make the figure public.
People close to Ethiopian Airlines said the process is being handled at the highest levels of management, underscoring the strategic importance of the request for the state-owned carrier.
The airline group has previously submitted a similar request in October 2022, seeking to raise its paid-up capital from about 100 billion Birr to 300 billion Birr. At the time, Chief Executive Officer Mesfin Tasew had confirmed to The Reporter that the request had been submitted and that the company was awaiting a response.
The earlier proposal was justified by the rapid growth of the airline’s assets and business transaction volume, which officials said had outpaced the level of its paid-up capital.
Ethiopian Airlines has consistently reported strong financial performance in recent years, including record revenues of USD 7.6 billion in the 2024/2025 fiscal year, which ended on July 7, 2025.
The figure represents an eight percent increase from the previous fiscal year. However, the group’s 2023/24 annual financial report indicates that its paid-up capital stands at around 263 billion Birr.
The renewed capital request has also featured in parliamentary oversight discussions. During a review session held last month, the parliamentary Committee on Government Development Enterprises examined EIH’s first-quarter performance, including issues related to Ethiopian Airlines and capital increment requirements.
During the session, a member of Parliament described Ethiopian Airlines as one of the country’s most critical national brands, noting that the carrier contributes a significant share of EIH’s revenue and a large portion of Ethiopia’s foreign exchange earnings. The lawmaker questioned whether sufficient support was being extended to such strategically important enterprises, particularly given challenges in repatriating foreign-currency revenues earned in other African markets.
Responding to questions on capital demands, Melikte Sahlu, deputy head of EIH, told MPs that capital constraints remain a major challenge across many state-owned development enterprises. She said EIH must balance limited national resources, the need to ensure the sustainability of investments and business operations, and the obligation to generate dividends at the national level.
While acknowledging that EIH would prefer to increase capital for all of its development enterprises if resources allowed, the deputy CEO said priorities are set based on proposals submitted by each entity and assessments of which enterprises could face serious operational risks without timely capital support.
She added that, given the country’s limited resources, expectations around the pace and scale of capital increases must be realistic and based on broad consensus.
The EIH board is expected to determine whether and how the renewed capital request from Ethiopian Airlines will be accommodated within these constraints.
