“IAG confirms that it has submitted a declaration of interest to Parpública within the framework of the Government's process for the partial privatization of TAP. However, several issues need to be clarified before IAG can propose an investment,” an official source from the group said in a statement released today.

The Government plans to sell up to 44.9% of the airline's capital, reserving 5% for employees, as stipulated by the Privatization Law. If this tranche is not fully subscribed, the future buyer will have the right of first refusal.

Considering that “TAP will have significant potential within IAG,” the group argues that its “decentralized model provides industry-leading margins and is in line with the Portuguese Government’s ambition to protect TAP.”

“Our track record demonstrates how we invest to strengthen our airlines, benefiting customers, employees, local economies and shareholders,” it maintains.

From November 22nd, Parpública, the company that manages the State's holdings, has a 20-day period (until December 12th) to deliver to the government a report describing the interested parties who have expressed interest and assessing their compliance with the participation requirements.

Within 20 days of the report's availability, interested parties who have demonstrated compliance with the requirements are invited to submit a non-binding proposal.

This second phase of the process, which will be divided into four stages, stipulates that the proposal must include, among other things, the price offered for the acquisition of the shares and information on how to obtain the necessary financial resources to complete the purchase.

Domestic or foreign operators, individually or in consortium, can apply, provided they meet the defined criteria, including revenue exceeding €5 billion in at least one of the last three years and proven experience in the aviation sector.

Proposals will also be evaluated based on fleet reinforcement, investment in maintenance and engineering, focus on sustainable fuels, respect for labour commitments, and vision regarding a possible strengthening of the shareholding position, according to the recently published notice.

As the government announced in July, the privatization of TAP — which also includes Portugália, the TAP Healthcare Unit, Cateringpor, and SPdH (formerly Groundforce) — should take place over approximately one year, although the final timeline depends on regulatory approvals.

In addition to IAG, Air France-KLM and the Lufthansa Group also formalized their interest in the TAP privatization process this week.