LISBON: Separate talks are being held about Lufthansa potentially taking the remaining 50.1% majority stake in Portugal's flag carrier TAP from the government in the future, Lufthansa's finance chief said on Thursday.
In this process, the Portuguese government could become a Lufthansa shareholder with a stake of up to 5%, CFO Till Streichert said.
Portugal's government on Wednesday picked Lufthansa to buy a stake of up to 49.9% in TAP Air Portugal for €1.2 billion (US$1.35 billion) over rival Air France-KLM.
The deal, years in the making and repeatedly delayed, is the next step in the consolidation of Europe's airline industry.
Streichert said he expects the deal to be closed in the first half of 2028 and to yield €450 million in synergies.
Lufthansa CEO Carsten Spohr told journalists the deal was "a perfect fit" for the group.
Lufthansa already owns Austrian Airlines, ITA Airways and SWISS among other carriers.
He said it would be an easier transaction for the EU to approve than Italy's ITA, whose turnaround is still ongoing, since there is less overlapping in business with Lufthansa.