Two possible Italian buyers emerged for national carrier Alitalia on Monday as the deadline for expressions of interest in the state's controlling stake passed.
Milanese financier Paolo Alazraki confirmed that he intended to make an offer to buy the stake while an investment fund created by two top Italian industrialists also said it had expressed an interest.
The Italian Treasury, which holds a 49.9% stake in Alitalia, has offered to sell no less than 30.1% of the carrier's stock capital plus all the convertible bonds it possesses.
Alazraki was until Monday the only person or group to have openly expressed an interest in buying the airline.
"I'll make an offer for the Treasury's entire stake," Alazraki said on Monday, speaking just before the deadline set for possible buyers to come forward. He confirmed that he was on his way to formalise the move with Merrill Lynch, one of the investment banks involved in the operation.
Alazraki, who has already presented his master plan to the airline's unions and the press, continued to offer reassurances on the fate of staff if he should become Alitalia's owner.
"I won't break it up, fire anyone or sell any land," he said. "The pilots, hostesses and administrative staff are the only good thing in Alitalia. The rest can be thrown away".
The recently created Management & Capital (M&C) investment fund of financier Carlo De Benedetti and footwear industrialist Diego Della Valle also said it was interested in looking more closely at the Treasury's offer.
According to sources in the financial world, M&C is looking at a possible bid in association with Goldman Sachs, US private investment firm Cerberus and Alcide Leali, the former owner of Air Dolomiti.
DIRE ACCOUNTS FIGURES.
Alazraki and M&C appeared not to have been put off by the dire figures for 2006 that Alitalia announced on Sunday.
The group said it had accumulated losses of 380 million euros last year, almost twice the amount it had predicted last autumn.
The Italian carrier told stock market regulator Consob that because of these losses it was no longer in a position to carry out its 2005-2008 business pan. Although they have made it clear they will not present their own bids now, some observers believe European airlines Air France-KLM and Germany's Lufthansa will step in at a later date, perhaps joining one of the declared bidders.
According to the British daily The Financial Times, "potential bidders will from today put pressure on the Italian government to give them a free hand in restructuring the airline as a condition for putting together rescue packages".
These potential bidders, the daily added, want Italy to ease some of the restrictions imposed on those wanting to acquire the airline. These conditions include maintaining the airline's national character and brand, domestic coverage and employment levels, although the government "has signalled willingness to be flexible on jobs," the FT said.
Air France, which already has a 2% stake in Alitalia, has always been seen as a logical partner for Alitalia. However, there is opposition in Italy to this option due to fears that the airline would be reduced to being a regional carrier for Europe's biggest airline.
