June 09, 2006	Friday	Jumadi-ul-Awwal 12, 1427

RIO DE JANEIRO, June 8: Brazil’s bankrupt flagship carrier Varig failed to sell at auction on Thursday, attracting a single offer that was half the lowest asking price.

The failure to sell the assets of what was once Brazil’s top airline could force liquidation.

The sole bid came from a group representing Varig employees, which offered the equivalent of $449 million for the financially-strapped airline’s international and domestic routes and 52 aircraft.

The minimum bid price was set at $860 million.

Bankruptcy Judge Luiz Roberto Ayoub said he would study the bid in the next 24 hours, before deciding whether to accept it.

In a first round of bidding, there were no offers that met the minimum price of $860 million.

A second round of bidding, for the airline’s domestic routes and 30 aircraft at a minimum price of $700 million, also failed.

When the auctioneers offered to sell the company to the highest bidder, the employees group, Participacoes, stepped forward with its cut-rate bid for all of Varig’s assets, Varig Operacional.—AFP