Air transport: Lufthansa and Lisbon sign tap entry

Lufthansa and the Portuguese government have contractually concluded the German aviation group's entry into the Portuguese state airline Tap. “This represents a crucial milestone in the privatization process of Tap,” says a Lufthansa statement.

The agreed purchase price for the initial 44.9 percent stake is 1.025 billion euros. Up to 5 percent is initially reserved for Tap employees, but could also go to Lufthansa. This would increase the purchase price to 1.2 billion euros. The majority will initially be retained by the Portuguese state at around 50 percent.

“Today’s signing is an excellent signal that goes far into the future for the shared future with Tap Air Portugal and the further development of the Lufthansa Group,” said Lufthansa boss Carsten Spohr, according to the statement. “Our networks complement each other ideally and open up new growth prospects for us, in addition to Portugal, particularly in South America and Brazil.”

Lufthansa was awarded a minority stake in Tap by the Portuguese government in mid-October. The German aviation group thus prevailed against its French-Dutch competitor Air France-KLM, which had previously won the contract for a majority in the Scandinavian SAS.

The entry into Tap is still subject to approval from the competition authorities.