Air Berlins LTU takeover goes ahead

Tags :Continental Europe, Air Berlin


(CAPA) The German Federal Cartel Office agreed to Air Berlins LTU acquisition without any restrictions. Air Berlin announced its intention to purchase LTU in Mar-07 and issued a capital increase and a convertible bond offering. The agreed price for LTU was EUR140 million. Additionally, Air Berlin offered to pay EUR200 million for LTUs existing debts.

Air Berlin’s CEO, Joachim Hunold, welcomed the decision of the Federal Cartel Office: "We finally got the strategic decision that we hoped for. Nevertheless, it is regrettable that this process took so long. Therefore, synergies could not be exploited during this year as planned. We were not able to adjust summer flight time tables of both airlines."

From 2008 onwards the Air Berlin Board is expecting to make cost savings between EUR70 million and EUR100 million annually. Hunold explained: "Whether we can achieve this, is depending essentially on the outcome of the collective agreement, which is negotiated with LTU pilots as we speak."

LTU operates 27 aircraft and employs almost 2,800 people. Last year the company had a turnover of EUR1.06 billion and carried 5.7 million passengers. After the completed takeover, LTU will remain a legally independent company.

Date posted: 09-Aug-07 

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