Frankfurt — German air carrier Lufthansa has submitted a joint bid with Switzerland-based MSC shipyards to purchase a controlling share of ITA Airways, the successor airline to the former Italian flagship airline Alitalia, the airline confirmed on Monday.
Bidding ended on Monday and the Lufthansa offer is considered to be a strong contender, though it remained unclear if there were any other bids. US airline investor Indigo, Franco-Dutch airline Air France-KLM and US air carrier Delta were all mentioned by industry analysts as likely bidders.
The Italian government renationalized Alitalia at the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, reorganizing the floundering airline to form ITA Airways. Rome is now seeking to privatize the restructured company once again, though has said it would aim to retain a minority share under any proposed deal.
Italian Finance Minister Daniele Franco has said he wants the deal wrapped up by the end of June.
Italy is Lufthansa's most important foreign market, and its past integration of Austrian, Brussels Airlines and Swiss could also be a model for its intentions for ITA.
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