Tourexpi
The capital
contribution thus directly benefits the company. As part of the agreement, the
MEF has also committed to a capital increase of EUR 250m into ITA. In addition,
the MEF and Lufthansa agreed on options to enable a potential acquisition of
the remaining shares by Lufthansa at a later date. The purchase price for the
remaining shares will be based on the business development of ITA Airways.
The contractual
finalization of the agreement is expected to be completed shortly. The
acquisition of the minority stake is subject to approval by the relevant
authorities. Upon closing of this transaction, ITA Airways and Lufthansa Group
are expected to immediately start their cooperation at a commercial and
operational level. As a network airline, ITA will closely cooperate with
Lufthansa Group to benefit from group synergies.
ITA Airways will
become the fifth network carrier in Lufthansa Group’s multi-brand and multi-hub
system. Italy represents the most important market outside the Group’s home
base countries and the United States. Italy is the third-largest economy in
Europe in terms of gross domestic product, with a strong export-oriented
economy. This is one among many reasons why business travel to and from Italy
is important. For private travelers, the Mediterranean country is one of the
most popular leisure destinations in the world.
Carsten Spohr, Chief
Executive Officer of Deutsche Lufthansa AG says: “Today’s agreement will lead
to a win-win situation for Italy, ITA Airways and Lufthansa Group. And it is
good news for Italian consumers and for Europe, because a stronger ITA will
invigorate competition in the Italian market. As a young company with a modern
fleet, and with its efficient and expanding hub in Rome, ITA is a perfect fit
for Lufthansa Group. In Milan, ITA serves a strong catchment area which also
offers potential for growth. As part of the Lufthansa Group family, ITA can
develop into a sustainable and profitable airline, connecting Italy with Europe
and the world. At the same time, this investment will enable us to continue our
growth in one of our most important markets.”
ITA Airways was
founded in November 2020 and has approximately 4,000 employees today.
Headquartered in Rome, the airline welcomes more than 10 million passengers per
year and is running a modern fleet of 66 Airbus aircraft. The hub in Rome is
ideally situated to further diversify ITA’s network towards Africa and Latin
America, offering its customers an improved connectivity to the Southern
hemisphere. Currently, ITA serves 64 destinations: 21 domestic, 33
international and 10 intercontinental routes.
As part of Lufthansa
Group, ITA will remain a standalone airline with its own management and a
strong brand identity - in line with Lufthansa Group's successful multi-hub,
multi-brand and multi-AOC strategy. At the same time, ITA can benefit from
synergies of the Group, such as access to the partner network, central revenue
management and the use of Lufthansa Group's global sales and marketing
channels.
To ensure that ITA’s
growth is sustainable, Lufthansa Group intends to extend the intermodal
transport for feeder traffic within Italy. For this purpose, Lufthansa Group
has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Italian state railroad
company Ferrovie dello Stato Italiane S.p.A. last February. The aim of the
partnership is to increasingly transport passengers in Italy with rail
connections to and from their respective flight connections at various Italian
airports. Lufthansa Group already operates similar intermodal cooperation
programs in its home markets, including Deutsche Bahn, Austrian ÖBB and Swiss
Federal Railways.
Image Credit: ©
Lufthansa Group
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