The prime minister said on Wednesday that German airline Lufthansa is welcome in TAP’s future privatization process and the German chancellor defended that the two companies can complement each other strategically.
These positions were taken by António Costa and Olaf Scholz at a press conference in São Bento, after a meeting between the two of about an hour and after being questioned about the possibility of Lufthansa participating in TAP’s future privatization process.
German Chancellor, Olaf Scholz, who is also attending tonight’s commemorative dinner for the 50th anniversary of the founding of the PS as leader of the SPD (German Social Democrats), believed that the strategy of the two airlines is “complementary “.
In fact, Olaf Scholz said he believed that, had it not been for the covid-19 pandemic, as of March 2020 “there could already be a fait accompli on that front”, in an allusion to the negotiations in which Lufthansa was previously involved.
For the German Chancellor, the Portuguese Prime Minister said that the TAP privatization process will begin soon.
“During the pre-market consultations, we found that there are several companies that have expressed interest, including Lufthansa. We know that Lufthansa’s interest is not recent, as it was negotiating with the [então] private shareholder [da TAP] take position”noted.
António Costa stressed that the Portuguese state must “ensure a transparent process” in the privatization process, “where everyone leaves on an equal footing”.
“But of course Lufthansa is very welcome, it is a great airline. It has a strategy of great complementarity with regard to TAP’s hub. However, everyone is at the same point on the starting line”he stressed.
Source: DN
