The government approved, on Thursday, the decree initiating the privatization process of TAP by which it intends to sell, in the first phase, 49.9% of the airline’s capital, announced Prime Minister Luís Montenegro.
The prime minister made a statement to journalists at the official residence in São Bento, during the Council of Ministers meeting, without taking questions.
“We approved a decree-law fulfilling a point in our electoral and government program, which is the privatization of 49.9% of TAP’s share capital,” said Montenegro, describing it as the “kick-off” of this first phase of privatization.
In this process, the government plans to sell up to 49.9% of the airline’s capital through a direct sale model, reserving up to 5% for employees, as provided by the privatization law.
The goal is that “44.9% goes to an investor and 5% to employees“, detailed Montenegro.
Montenegro stated that “there will be many interested parties” and referred further details to explanations that will be given by the Ministers of Finance and Infrastructure later this afternoon.
This is the first step to initiate the sale of TAP, which will once again have private shareholders after the government moved towards nationalization in 2020 due to the pandemic’s impact on air transport.
The decree-law will also have to be reviewed by the President of the Republic, who, in October 2023, vetoed the document prepared by the government of António Costa to begin TAP’s privatization. At the time, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa returned the diploma, approved by the Council of Ministers on September 28 of that year, deeming it as raising “multiple doubts and hesitations in light of the desired maximum transparency of the process.”
The privatization of the airline has been on the agenda since 2023 but was interrupted with the fall of the last two PS and PSD governments.
It should be noted that the privatization of TAP was suspended following the fall of the last two governments.
Originally state-owned, the flag airline was partially privatized in 2015, a process reversed the following year by the socialist government of António Costa, when the state regained 50% of the company amid criticisms of financial exposure.
Last year, the government led by current Prime Minister Luís Montenegro announced the intention to start the privatization process in 2025, with the sale of minority stakes, and has since been negotiating with European giants such as Air France KLM, Lufthansa, and IAG.
The government’s reasoning for such terms focuses on the need to ensure the Lisbon hub and main strategic routes, while aiming to recover about 3.2 billion euros injected by taxpayers during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Finance Minister Joaquim Miranda Sarmento assured that the sale of less than 50% of the Portuguese airline’s capital is planned for “the coming weeks.” The government is looking for an “international partner.”
[News updated at 12:52]
