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Alitalia SpA Chief Executive Officer Andrea Ragnetti said that the Italian carrier is focused on raising capital rather than discussions with investor Air France-KLM Group about its shareholder structure.
The Rome-based airline, in which Air France-KLM holds a 25 percent stake, with the rest held by Italian shareholders, will consider whether to raise funds through a capital increase or convertible bond issue at a board meeting on Feb. 14, he said.
Ragnetti said that while he’d expect Air France-KLM to subscribe to a fund raising, in the longer term there are various scenarios for consolidation, including the involvement of its investor’s rivals Deutsche Lufthansa AG and British Airways parent International Consolidated Airlines Group SA.
“We are not talking to anybody at the moment,” Ragnetti said in an interview in New York. “There are a lot of other possibilities in Europe, such as IAG and Lufthansa.”
If a rival major were to take a stake, Air-France KLM would likely exit its holding, since the big European players compete on a global scale and a shared investment is unlikely, the CEO said. Alitalia is currently a member of the SkyTeam alliance headed by Air France-KLM and Delta Air Lines Inc.
More than one board-meeting might be required to address Alitalia’s capital needs, Ragnetti said.