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Etihad and Alitalia unveil €1.76 billion plan
[ August 8, 2014 // Chris ]Eithad and Alitalia have finalised their plans for the Abu Dhabi-based airline to take a €560 million in the Italian carrier, subject to regulatory approval, with core Alitalia shareholders committing an additional €300 million. A further €598 million in financial restructuring of short and medium term debt will be provided by financial institutions and existing bank shareholders, together with €300 million new loan facilities by Italian financial institutions.
The reinvigorated airline would offer new international routes and flights from more Italian cities to Abu Dhabi and beyond, with an optimised network and increased frequencies.
Alitalia’s cargo business will be relaunched and expanded, with a centre of excellence in Northern Italy and investment in handling at Italian airports.
The proposed network plan focuses on long-haul flights from Rome Fiumicino and Milan Malpensa. From Winter 2014, Alitalia will increase frequency between Rome Fiumicino and Abu Dhabi from five per week to daily, and there will be a new daily service between Milan Malpensa and Abu Dhabi.
From Summer 2015, Alitalia plans to introduce direct flights from markets such as Venice, Catania and Bologna to Abh Dhabi.
Rome Fiumicino will emerge as a larger European intercontinental hub, with up to five new routes over the next four years, while long-haul flights from Milan Malpensa will more than double to 25 flights a week by 2018. Alitalia’s widebody fleet is planned to grow by a third, while its narrowbody fleet will be rightsized to meet the requirements of the new network plan.
Left to right: Etihad Airways’ chief financial officer, James Rigney; Alitalia chairman, Roberto Colaninno; Etihad Airways’ president and CEO, James Hogan; and Alitalia CEO Gabriele Del Torchio mark the official signing of the investment deal in Rome