It looks likely that Berlusconi's masterplan to rescue Alitalia will be accepted without any intervention of the European Commission.
Antonio Tajani, the EU transport commissioner nominated by Silvio Berlusconi in June, has publicly backed the operation, which involves merging Alitalia with Air One, Italy's second biggest airline.
(...)
But Brussels officials dealing with the merger showed much less enthusiasm towards the rescue plan. "It is very tricky," said a transport expert at the Commission.
The Italian government decided to freeze national competition rules to allow the merger to take place. According to the plan, the merged company will be split in two, with a so-called 'bad company' acquiring all the debts of the buried Alitalia, which could then be paid back by the Italian State. The main assets, air slots and employees will be absorbed by the other company.
However, (...) Brussels is still evaluating whether it has competence concerning the planned merger between Alitalia and Air One. According to the EU treaties, the Commission plays a role in national mergers only if at least one of the companies involved receives more than a third of its turnover outside its borders, which seems at first sight unlikely in this case since both Alitalia and Air One operate primarily in Italy.
If this is the case, it would only be up to the Italian competition authority to intervene. And since the government has just approved a decree freezing national competition rules on the case, the merger will be accepted without possibile opposition.
As published by EurActiv network.