A “stand-alone plan” has been drawn up in case no strategic partner is found for Air Malta, Tourism Minister Edward Zammit Lewis has confirmed.
Following the collapse of talks with Alitalia a fortnight ago, there has been “renewed interest” from a number of foreign airlines to acquire a stake in the national carrier. However, no decision has yet been made in this regard, as the offers were still being evaluated, he said.
These developments happened a few days after The Sunday Times of Malta revealed that Air Malta would try to “go it alone”, as there were no other “real” strategic partners lined up with whom to start negotiations.
The newspaper said the plan would involve cost-cutting measures to the tune of €6 million, which could possibly include job cuts and a wage freeze.
Though on that same day, the Tourism Ministry issued a statement describing the story as “untrue”, Dr Zammit Lewis yesterday confirmed the government had a plan in case all offers fell short of expectations.
“During the Alitalia talks, we did not put all our eggs into one basket. We also worked on a stand-alone plan to see what reforms would be necessary,” he said.
The existence of the stand-alone plan has increased the likelihood of the government taking on board the Opposition’s proposal of seeking Maltese investment.
The Nationalist Party had floated the idea in May last year, soon after the start of the Alitalia talks.
Though such an option was not completely ruled out, the government cited expert advice by legal firm Camilleri Preziosi, which said that Air Malta could not be floated on the stock exchange due to its dire financial situation. Yet nine months down the line the government seems to be having second thoughts.
Asked if the Opposition’s proposal was being taken seriously, the Tourism Minister yesterday remarked that a plan put forward by PN MP Claudio Grech contained “very positive” elements.
Malta lacks big players in the aviation industry. This does not mean, however, that local investment from businessmen or hoteliers is being excluded
Surprisingly, he said the government had been looking at the option well before the Opposition had floated it. Nevertheless, Dr Zammit Lewis insisted that local investment alone would not be enough to address the problem.
“Malta lacks big players in the aviation industry. This does not mean, however, that local investment from businessmen or hoteliers is being excluded,” he said.
“As for the option of issuing Air Malta shares to the public, this would only make sense once the airline was back on its feet and not in the present circumstances,” he added.
The Tourism Minister said the government was open to considering such possibilities within the framework of a having potential strategic partner.
He remarked that following the collapse of the Alitalia talks, there had been “renewed interest”, including from a number of airlines outside Europe that had never approached the government before.
While he acknowledged that time was not on the government’s side, Dr Zammit Lewis refused to offer any time frame for an agreement.
“I cannot tell you if there is a set deadline to reach agreement. It takes two to tango,” he said.