Air New Zealand hopes to acquire a further 3% of the shares of Virgin Australia, taking its interest to 22.99%.
The agreement is subject to Foreign Investment Review Board (FIRB) and Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) conditions.
The FIRB is seeking the views of the ACCC, which has advised Air New Zealand that it intends to conduct public enquiries to enable it to form a view in relation to these potential shareholdings.
Air New Zealand said the additional interest affirms its strong belief and confidence in Virgin Australia and the strategy it is pursuing under the leadership of John Borghetti and his team.
Air New Zealand said is not seeking a position on the Board of Virgin Australia nor does it have the intention of obtaining control of Virgin Australia.
In separate announcements, Virgin Australia will increase direct services between Perth and the Pilbara town of Karratha in Western Australia as a result of strong demand from the mining and resources industry.
And from October this year, Virgin will operate its Airbus A330 service on all Perth-Sydney weekday flights.
