“We are already at an advanced stage” in the investigation launched into the State aid granted by Italy to the airline Alitalia, said Margrethe Vestager, Executive Vice-President of the European Commission responsible for competition policy, on Thursday 30 January in Brussels.
On 23 April 2018, the Commission opened an in-depth investigation into the €900 million loan granted by the Italian State to the airline Alitalia in 2017 to determine whether or not it is compatible with the EU State aid rules (see EUROPE 12007/7).
The Commission “has taken note of the fact that the new €400 million bridging loan is no longer just a government decree, but has been approved by Parliament and has already been paid to the airline. This is a new issue that we will have to deal with”, Vestager said in response to a question from the press.
Ms Vestager added that “the Alitalia case has been going on for a very long time, and we have also noticed that the sales process has been delayed. “A decision will be taken on Alitalia, we are already at an advanced stage in the study of the case, and we are in close contact with the Italian authorities on this issue”, she concluded. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)