The Ministry of Economy and Lufthansa sent the European Commission on Tuesday evening the definitive package of remedies to obtain the OK for the German entry into Ita Airways. The passage – which comes after the informal green light to the sacrifices sent in draft form last Sunday – is the last act of the parties involved to allow Brussels to write its positive opinion. The document was delivered shortly after 10pm on 18 June 2024.
The Mef
“We have responded to the last doubts of the European Commission and we hope that this will allow the acquisition of a share of Ita by Lufthansa to be completed in a reasonably short time”, the Treasury said in a note. «We await, as expected, the formal decision by July 4th and we are already working to ensure that the conditions agreed with the Commission are implemented in order to finalize the operation in the coming months».
The preliminary opinion
On Sunday evening, Mef and Lufthansa informally submitted the remedies to address the EU Antitrust’s concerns regarding competition in Italy following the operation. Around lunchtime on Monday, Brussels sent its positive feedback on the sacrifices proposed on the three main points: the high concentration at Milan Linate, some short-haul flights and the connections between Rome and North America. The green light, on a technical level, was used by the parties to send the final document on Tuesday evening.
The date of July 4th
From this moment on, the European Commission will be able to start writing the report that will accompany – in the absence of twists and turns – the authorization for the wedding between the Germans and the Italians which will be published on 4 July. The operation involves Lufthansa’s entry into ITA through a reserved capital increase of 325 million euros in exchange for 41% of the Italian carrier. The agreement signed a year ago in Rome provides that in a second phase the Germans will rise to 90% of the company, until they have total control “by 2033” for a total investment of 829 million euros.
