Ita-Lufthansa, price obstacle
Approaching maneuvers for the closure of the Ita-Lufthansa deal? The CEO of the German airline tried today to convey trust Carsten Spohr on the occasion of the A4E Aviation Summit 2023 in Brussels: “I am absolutely convinced that we can arrive at the creation of a common business plan and that a breakthrough for ITA is possible. I also believe that recent talks have confirmed our belief that a turnaround is possible once we integrate ITA into the Lufthansa Group.”
Obviously the game is far from closed. As explained by Spohr himself, the evaluations are still ongoing and the main issue is that of the price. “Ita has lost public money – explained the CEO of Lufthansa – and this is reflected in the valuation, which represents the last real obstacle in the discussion. We are confident we can sign within the exclusivity period.” The MEF and the German company have given each other 60 working days starting January 27, so there is still just under a month (April 21) to try to find the right balance. “The next big deal we need to find is on price reflecting the losses of Ita. I am confident that we will be able to reach this agreement,” Spohr explained.
Meeting tomorrow
To try to unravel the skein Spohr will fly to Rome tomorrow to meet Giorgetti. “It is important not to forget that Milan is the third catchment area in Europe after Paris and London. Italy is the third largest aviation market in Europe after the UK and Spain and Italy is Europe’s third largest economy in the EU after France and Germany. The incentives are there: this market needs to stay connected to the world. The Lufthansa group, together with Ita, could do it. And I think both sides know that. That’s why, with this rationale behind it, I’m so hopeful. We will find a solution,” concluded Spohr.
Lazzerini: “Physiological losses, bookings increased by 180%”
Yesterday Ita presented his accounts, which reported just under 500 million euros in losses for 2022. Today the CEO of Ita Fabio Lazzerini he returned to talk about the future of the company, trying to underline the growth of the company that arose from the ashes of Alitalia. “Operational management was definitely superior to both the Plan and the budget. There have been some losses, but physiological since we are a startup”, Lazzerini underlined.
“There was a loss in our plan and budget. That of 2022 was mainly linked to the price of fuel, the commercial and operational performance partially offset the increase in the price of fuel which was 298 million. In the first quarter of this year, however, we will have savings of 12-15 million on fuel”. Furthermore, bookings have grown compared to the beginning of 2022: “We have already received bookings for the next few months which are about 180% higher than last year, and they are growing by 12-15% week over week”. A performance “mainly driven by the long range, with a load factor of 90-95%, and by the international market but with good stability also by the domestic market”, concluded the CEO.