Lufthansa aims for 20% stake in ITA Airways -source
FRANKFURT (Reuters) -Germany’s Lufthansa desires to accumulate a 20% stake in state-owned Italian airline ITA Airways, the successor to Alitalia, and its companion MSC is bidding for a 60% stake, an individual conversant in the matter advised Reuters on Tuesday.
The Italian state would initially hold the remaining 20%, the supply mentioned. The Lufthansa-MSC duo made their provide to accumulate a majority stake in ITA on Monday.
MSC, also called Mediterranean Transport Group, has filed a suggestion along with Lufthansa and is awaiting the following steps, an organization spokesperson mentioned, declining to remark additional.
The Italian Treasury didn’t reply to a request for touch upon the sale course of after the deadline for bids on Monday.
MSC and Lufthansa face a rival bid from U.S. monetary investor Certares which is working with Air France-KLM and Delta Air Traces.
Delta confirmed on Tuesday that it could not be a monetary investor in ITA, however mentioned in a press release that it could search to construct on an current industrial partnership with ITA.
Air France-KLM declined to touch upon ITA on Tuesday.
It has launched a 2.26-billion-euro ($2.4 billion) share sale to shore up its steadiness sheet and repay some French state help, bringing it nearer to repaying authorities pandemic help and assembly European Union circumstances for collaborating in any future airline consolidation.
Italian media studies mentioned the Alitalia successor was value between round 1 billion and a couple of billion euros. A Lufthansa spokesperson didn’t need to touch upon the figures.
A choice is predicted within the coming weeks about which of the 2 bidder teams can be invited to launch unique negotiations. Italy is aiming to finish a sale by the top of June.
(Reporting by Ilona Wissenbach, Zuzanna Szymanska, Rajesh Kumar Singh, Jonathan Saul and Giuseppe FonteWriting by Paul CarrelEditing by Miranda Murray and Jonathan Oatis)
