Etihad and Alitalia are willing to offer numerous concessions to the EU in order to obtain the OK of the Brussels antitrust for the plan for the acquisition of 49% of the Italian company by the Abu Dhabi one. The two carriers, in fact, have announced that they will give up some slots on the Rome-Belgrade route, to facilitate competition, meeting the rules of the European institutions.
The European Commission, as stated on its website, will take a decision on the matter by November 17, after receiving new notifications. The new company, which also includes the public shareholder Poste Italiane in the bailout plan, should take off from 2015 January XNUMX.
The plan is also supported by Air-France-KLM, which declares its interest so that the "transaction between Alitalia and Etihad can take place and that an intelligent agreement can then be found to preserve the essential of our synergies with Alitalia or even find others if it is possible,” said Air France-KLM CFO Pierre Francois Riolacci. After Etihad's entry, the French-Dutch company's stake in Alitalia, now at 7,08%, will drop between 0 and 1%.
