American Marconi Wireless News - Portugal picks Air France-KLM and Lufthansa to make offers for TAP

The Portuguese government announced last September that it was seeking a major international airline to buy most of the 49.9 percent stake that it plans to privatise.

Air France-KLM and Lufthansa both submitted non-binding offers this month, and Portugal's government now wants them to submit binding bids within three months.

"Two of the three big European airline groups... are in the running, which demonstrates the attractiveness of the company as well as the country," said Finance Minister Joaquim Miranda Sarmento.

IAG, the parent company of British Airways and Iberia, had earlier expressed an interest in taking a stake but did not make a bid.

Infrastructure Minister Miguel Pinto Luz, who is in charge of the privatisation of TAP, said a final decision could be made in August or early September.

TAP,which was renationalised in 2020 to stem losses from the Covid-19 pandemic, is among the few remaining state-owned carriers in Europe.

International airlines are circling around TAP primarily because of its routes to Brazil and Portuguese-speaking Africa.

"Thanks to its ideal geographical position, Lisbon would become the group's unique southern European hub," Air France-KLM said earlier this month, adding that it would offer "extensive connectivity" to the Americas and Africa.

The airline has around 7,700 employees and a fleet or around 100 Airbus planes.

P.Mathewson--AMWN