Deutsche Lufthansa AG (Lufthansa) is looking to initially acquire a minority stake in Italian carrier ITA Airways (Italia Trasporto Aereo S.p.A.) with an option to purchase any remaining shares at a later stage.
Lufthansa has submitted an offer to the Italian Ministry of Economy and Finance (Ministero dell'economia e delle finanze) to conclude a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in this respect. Once both parties have signed the MoU, further negotiations and discussions would then be conducted on an exclusive basis. Initial discussions will primarily focus on a possible equity investment by Lufthansa, the commercial and operational integration of ITA into the Lufthansa Airline Group, as well as resulting synergies. Should a binding agreement be reached, its implementation would be subject to approval by the relevant authorities.
Headquartered in Rome, Italy and employing approximately 3,000 staff, ITA Airways was founded in 2020 and began commercial operations in 2021. It is fully owned by the Government of Italy via the Ministry of Economy and Finance after a decree was signed to permit Italy's flag-carrying airline Alitalia to reorganise as Italia Trasporto Aereo S.p.A.
