New pledges made by ITA and Lufthansa to secure an OK to their merger are still not enough for the European Commission but there is time until a final decision on July 4 for improvements to be made to get the green light, sources close to the dossier said Tuesday.
The merger between the Italian and German flag carriers is a "complex" case, the sources said after talks between EC Vice President and Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager and Economy Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti.
It is still possible to achieve steps forwards on the basis of both sides' willingness to reach a satisfactory deal, the sources said.
The Italian economy ministry said last Tuesday that it and Lufthansa have submitted the remedies requested by the European Commission for the green light for the German carrier's acquisition of a 41% stake in Italy's ITA Airways.The EU executive has identified competition problems linked tothe operation.The Italian Treasury owns ITA, the company that replaced theloss-making former flag-carrier Alitalia in 2021.Under Brussels' lens are, in particular, 39 short-haul routesconnecting Italy with Central Europe, the US, Canada and Japan,and the risk of a dominant position at Milan's Linate airport.The main remedies presented by the two airlines entail Ita andLufthansa being ready to cede 11 pairs of slots (22 outward andreturn) at Milan-Linate to competitors - including the low-costEasyjet - and to freeze the alliance for two years oninternational routes from Fiumicino to the United States andCanada, continuing to operate temporarily as competitors.The EU will "carefully assess" the new commitments "aimed atresolving the preliminary competition problems" in the merger, aCommission spokeswoman said Tuesday.The Commission said its deadline for a decision on the operation has been put back from June 15 to July 4.
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