Lufthansa seen as ready to bid for ITA Airways stake, sources say

A bid from German carrier Lufthansa (LHAG.DE) for ITA Airways could come early next week, three sources familiar with the matter said on Friday, in a crucial step to speeding up the full privatisation of Italy's state-owned company. The privatisation of ITA, which officially replaced loss-making Alitalia in 2021, has proved a headache for the Italian government which in December passed a decree to initially sell a minority stake in order to facilitate a full divestment. On Jan. 18 potential bidders will not be allowed to access ITA's financial data anymore, two of the sources said, adding Lufthansa was the only credible potential bidder. A government official said a Lufthansa bid could land even before Jan. 18, signalling the new right-wing administration of Giorgia Meloni was confident of finalising the deal. Lufthansa declined to comment. The government decree allowed bidders to buy stakes through one or more capital increases and stipulated that another airline must end up with a majority stake in ITA after the privatisation process is concluded.<br/>