Jonas Butautis, chairman of the supervisory board of Magnetic MRO, said in Vilnius on Thursday that Magnetic MRO has hired the consultancy Seabury to advise it in the sell-off and that several strategic and financial investors from China and the United Arab Emirates have displayed interest in Magnetic MRO.

Balticap partner Kristjan Kalda told BNS on Friday that as an investment company, Baltcap is under all circumstances interested in finding new strategic investors for Magnetic MRO and confirmed that there are currently parties interested in the company.

He added, however, that it cannot be said at this point whether, when and at what price the holding will go up for sale. "It was a M&A conference, and after the presentation there was an informal conversation where questions were asked," Kalda explained. "In the course of the conversation, [Butautis] presented his personal opinion regarding what the value of Magentic MRO could be. You cannot conclude based on this whether, when and at what price Baltcap will be selling its stake."

According to Butautis, the company's approximate fair valuation is seven times EBITDA, or a company's earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization.

Magnetic MRO AS finished 2016 with a revenue of €50.5 million, with an operating profit of €2.6 million and amortization approximately €1.1 million, which corresponds to an EBITDA of roughly €3.7 million. Butautis said that Magnetic MRO expects its EBITDA to increase to roughly €7 million this year and €10 million in 2018. Based on the aforementioned figures, the fair valuation of Magnetic MRO AS would be at least €50 million.

Magnetic MRO, then named Air Maintenance Estonia, used to be a holding of Scandinavian carrier SAS until 2010, when it was acquired by Baltcap Private Equity Fund. In 2014, the company was renamed Magnetic MRO, and two Cyprus-registered companies, Sasmex Investments Ltd and Tiaravia Services Ltd, acquired a one-third holding in the company. Currrently, 70 percent of the shares belong to Baltcap and 30 percent to four minority shareholders.