The board of ITA Airways has stripped executive chairman Alfredo Altavilla of his powers, giving chief executive Fabio Lazzerini the task of negotiating the sale of the Italian state-owned carrier, a source close to the matter said on Wednesday 12 October.
Details
Both ITA Airways and Altavilla did not reply to a request of comment from Reuters.
Italy picked in August a group led by US private equity fund Certares, backed by Air France-KLM and Delta Air Lines Inc, for exclusive talks on buying a majority stake in ITA Airways.
Italy had to extend the talks through October after failing to meet a 30 September deadline for an accord.
The majority of ITA's board blamed Altavilla for slowing negotiations with Certares, Italian daily Il Messaggero reported on Sunday.
The source said that six of nine board members voted to strip the executive chairman of his powers.
Certares is ready to pay €350 million for a 50% stake plus one share of the Italian airline, sources have told Reuters.
Rival Bid
The consortium beat a rival bid presented by shipping group MSC and Germany's Lufthansa for the chance to gain control of the successor to Italian flagship carrier Alitalia.
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