Alitalia runs but at this point rapid political choices are needed. While the new government is being examined by the President of the Republic and the Gentiloni government has delegated the dossier to his successor, the company is holding on to the wire. In the interregnum there is the risk of wasting precious time and the extraordinary commissioner Luigi Gubitosi (now also Tim's board member) does not hide the risks as he takes stock of the activity at the conference organized by the CISL. Together with him Giovanni Castellucci, CEO of Atlantia now seems to have also taken into account the default of the company and calls the pilots into question for an extreme United Airlines model rescue attempt.
Alitalia's first-half revenues "will grow significantly - says Gubitosi - we had a 6% growth in passenger revenues in the first quarter and the second will be more or less similar". However, the manager underlines that it will be necessary to take into account the trend in oil prices and therefore in fuels which "in 2019 all companies will be affected". Speaking of costs, the commissioner also said that "this year the tax exemption on hours flown has not been confirmed and we have an extra cost of 25 million".
“Alitalia is there and continues to be there, with a metaphor for the sector I can say that 'we have enough fuel' and there isn't a problem of foreign customers worried by the news that arrives” adds Gubitosi. However, "important decisions have to be made". And here is the limit of commissarial management. The choices, he repeats, are political and must be quick. “The most important aspect is that we decide how to go forward. The choice must be political”, Gubitosi points out, underlining that “whatever choice the government wants to make, one, two or three, even if the closure seems residual to me, it must be done quickly”.
The options to which Gubitosi refers concern the three offers presented (by 10 April, the date on which the terms expired) by Lufthansa, Easyjet and Wizz Air, none of which, however, are interested in taking over the entire company or the entire face. So much so that Development Minister Carlo Calenda was forced to approve a six-month extension of the commissioner: in fact, it was unthinkable that a resigning government could decide such an important game. The decree, which is being converted by the Chamber, also postpones the repayment of the 900 million loan granted to the company (from September to the end of the year).
But the big airports now seem to have digested the idea of a drastic downsizing or even a stew of the company. "The theme of Alitalia's cost competitiveness, whatever the future may be, cannot be avoided because our market is the least guaranteed", confirmed Atlantia's CEO Giovanni Castellucci "the challenge is complex but we can take inspiration from similar situations like United 15-20 years ago” with the entry into the shareholding structure of the pilots who took over the majority of the company. “But cost competitiveness is imperative,” he reiterated.
Atlantia controls Aeroporti di Roma and Castellucci's voice is therefore relevant. "Fiumicino - he adds - is an airport that tries to help Alitalia in every way, the support is there". And yet, he acknowledges that by now “an Alitalia crisis would be a problem but unfortunately not particularly relevant because it is no longer so central to Fiumicino's economy. And I say that with great regret."
Adr has receivables of 316 million from the customer companies of the Roman airport and Alitalia is certainly the first since it accounts for around 47% in terms of passengers but now only 29% in terms of aeronautical revenues on the Adr balance sheet. For Sea, which manages Milan Malpensa and Linate, Alitalia's weight is negligible at Malpensa but very significant at Linate (60% of slots). The company controlled by the Municipality boasts 25 million Az credits that ended up in the liquidation procedure. How much he will be able to recover is not easy to predict, but the payments from the commissioner's management have so far been punctual, both Adr and Sea said.
However, both Adr and Sea have already adopted post-Alitalia strategies. Fiumicino has begun to differentiate its client companies, focusing on long-haul flights. Malpensa did it a long time ago when Alitalia left the airport, now ten years ago. It has since largely recovered traffic and customers. Because this is the reality: with or without Alitalia, traffic is growing everywhere, in Rome, Milan and in the rest of the world.
