Easyjet confirms talks over possible bid for struggling airline Alitalia
Easyjet confirmed it is in talks over a possible acquisition of struggling airline Alitalia this morning.
The British budget flyer may launch a consortium bid for the airline with Ferrovie dello Stato Italiane and Delta Air Lines for the company.
Read more: Flybe directors give shareholders ultimatum over takeover bid
Easyjet said the trio wanted to “explore options for the future operations of Alitalia”.
“There is no certainty at this stage that any transaction will proceed and Easyjet will provide a further update in due course, if and when appropriate,” the firm added.
Alitalia has been languishing in administration since May 2017, after receiving around €7bn from Italy’s government over the previous decade.
Trade unions voted against a proposed restructure of the company shortly before it fell into administration, which would have seen 49 per cent shareholder Etihad and Italian investors front up €2bn for a recovery plan.
Easyjet first expressed interest in the Italian flyer back in October last year.
News of the talks between the possible buyers follows a controversial sale of troubled airline Flybe to a Virgin-led consortium, which will leave investors with just a penny per share.
Meanwhile travel agent Thomas Cook is pondering a sale of its own airline after losses reached £60m in its latest set of results.
Read more: Thomas Cook considers airline sale as losses hit £60m
Chief executive Peter Fankhauser said the airline is a “very healthy business” and rejected comparisons to possible sales of struggling flyers like Germania and Flybe.
The news sent shares soaring before they collapsed last Friday, and have since dropped to 28p.