The Italian government has begun the process towards the long-awaited partial-privatisation of Alitalia, as the European Commission mulls over whether to carry out a formal investigation into suspected state aid, writes Pino Modola.
The Italian cabinet has approved the prime minister's decree to appoint an external adviser and the sale of at least 12.5% of the company stock by the treasury, which will reduce the government's holding in the airline to less than 50%.
The decree must now be submitted to the parliamentary transport committees for approval.
According to European Union sources in Brussels, the note the Italian government sent earlier this month to the EC indicates that the privatisation will be carried out using financial markets and/or industry players, therefore not ruling out the possible involvement of a major carrier.
Such a solution was rejected by some of the government's coalition partners last year, when it seemed likely that Alitalia would join the Air France-KLM alliance.
The privatisation effort comes as Alitalia's financial situation worsens and it now forecasts a similar result this year to the €520 million ($670 million) loss suffered in 2003.
Source: Flight International
