UK budget carrier easyJet PLC (LON:EZJ) has made an offer to buy parts of Italy’s troubled airline, Alitalia
Alitalia went into administration in May after employees rejected job and salary cuts as part of a €2bn plan to rescue the company.
READ: EasyJet profits at top end as passenger numbers hit record
Since then, it has been propped up by almost €1bn worth of loans issued by the Italian government and the city of Rome.
Like most of the carriers in Europe’s congested travel industry including Monarch, it had been hit by a decline in tourism following recent terrorist attacks, as well as by severe competition.
easyJet confirmed it has submitted an expression of interest in Alitalia, but like the majority of the other bidders – Alitalia says there are seven in total – it only wants “certain assets”.
READ: Monarch Airlines confirms talks after reports say bids lodged by easyJet and others for parts of its short-haul network
Lufthansa – which agreed a €210mln deal for parts of Air Berlin last week – is another known to have made an offer and, if successful, said it intends to build a ‘new Alitalia’.
The Italian government has extended the deadline for making a final decision over the Alitalia sale until April next year.
easyJet shares were broadly flat at £12.87 in mid-morning trade.