Alitalia rescuers to ask for another delay

Companies hoping to rescue Italian carrier Alitalia [CAITLA.UL] will ask for a deadline for presenting their plan to be extended as they are still negotiating key aspects, Reuters quoted two sources familiar with the matter as saying.

Italian railway group Ferrovie dello Stato, which is leading an effort to take control of Alitalia, is expected to ask administrators running the carrier for a “substantial” delay to the Sept. 15 deadline, one of the sources said.

It would be the sixth delay since Ferrovie expressed its interest in investing in the carrier at the end of last year.

Administrators appointed by Italy’s government have cut costs and renegotiated plane leasing contracts to make Alitalia more efficient, but the carrier still burns cash and had been kept afloat thanks to a 900 million euro bridging loan granted by Italy’s treasury.

Via Reuters