LISBON (Reuters) – Portugal’s government plans to resume construction in 2025, the country’s infrastructure minister said, after receiving interest from more than a dozen potential buyers.
The previous Socialist Party government approved the privatization of at least 51% of TAP in September 2023, but the sale did not go ahead because Portugal held early elections in March, won by a center-right alliance.
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“We will begin the company’s privatization process in 2025 and, to this end, we will listen to all interested parties,” said Miguel Pinto Luz.
The minister told a parliamentary committee on Thursday night that TAP “has also been strengthening itself in financial terms, with operational results in line with or better than those of its European peers”.
“Whatever the final privatization model,” said Pinto Luz, the TAP brand and its Lisbon hub will be maintained, adding that “the strategic routes for the Portuguese diaspora”, which includes Brazil, Angola, Mozambique and the United States , will not be reduced.
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Portugal’s Prime Minister Luís Montenegro, who had previously insisted on the full privatization of TAP, signaled a month ago that a partial sale was a possibility.
Pinto Luz said that “there were expressions of interest from more than a dozen national and international interested parties”, including those from outside Europe.
The government confirmed meetings with Air France-KLM, Lufthansa and British Airways.
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Reuters reported in September that Lufthansa was interested in a 19.9% stake in TAP, below the 20% threshold that would require European Commission approval.
Air France-KLM is open to several options, including buying a minority stake, Reuters reported.
(Reporting by Sergio Gonçalves)
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