The Italian Ministry of the Economy has announced that it will not extend the period of exclusivity for the takeover of ITA Airways, the successor of Alitalia.
The new Italian Economy Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti announced on Monday his decision not to renew the exclusivity period for negotiations with the American investment fund Certares, Air France-KLM and Delta Air Lines on the sale of ITA Airways.
“The exclusivity obligations granted on August 31 to Certares, Air France-KLM and Delta for the sale of ITA cease today,” the ministry said in a statement, adding that “discussions were continuing” with a view to a “possible agreement on a sale” of the public company.
The former government led by Mario Draghi announced at the end of August that it had accepted the offer of Certares, associated with Air France-KLM and Delta Air Lines, for the acquisition of ITA Airways with a view to the opening of exclusive negotiations.
This surprise announcement was a setback for the Italian-Swiss shipowner MSC and its German ally Lufthansa, which until then had been considered favourites in the race to buy Alitalia’s successor and could now enter the track again.
Certares was prepared to shell out 350 million euros to acquire a 50% plus one share in ITA and later invest 600 million euros, according to the Italian press. The Italian Ministry of Economy would have retained two seats out of the five of the future board of directors of ITA.
MSC and Lufthansa had offered at the end of August to pay 850 million euros for 80% of ITA, leaving the Italian state with only a 20% share. The CEO of Lufthansa, Carsten Spohr, in mid-October in Frankfurt: “I am ready to fly to Rome every day, but it must be full privatisation, as originally envisaged”.
The representatives of the Italian state on the board of directors of ITA Airways had recently withdrawn operational powers from its president Alfredo Altavilla, who has always been favourable to the offer submitted by Lufthansa and MSC. The Italian state has conferred the powers of Alfredo Altavilla to general manager Fabio Lazzerini, who will now be in charge of negotiations on the privatisation of ITA Airways.
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