The official signing of the agreement reached last May 25 between the Italian Minister of Economy and Finance (MEF), Giancarlo Giorgetti, and the CEO of Lufthansa, Carsten Sphor, for the privatization of the ITA Airways is expected between today and tomorrow, of which the Germans intend to acquire a minority stake equal to 41% for EUR 325 million.

Between Wednesday 7 and Thursday 8 June the contract will therefore be signed which delivers a share of the Italian airline to Lufthansa. This is a decisive step for the ITA-Lufthansa marriage. This contractual finalization, which comes at the end of long months of negotiation, is not just a formality: the deed will be sent to the European Antitrust which, after reading the papers and assessing the impact of the agreement on free competition in the air market, will express an opinion. 

This opinion will be decisive for having, or not, the green light for the marriage by the European Commission. Only after the go-ahead from Brussels will the German Lufthansa group be able to pay the EUR 325 million capital increase, thus taking over the minority stake of 41% of ITA Airways.