AER LINGUS:THE GOVERNMENT has decided to sell its 25 per cent stake in Aer Lingus as part of its disposal programme of State assets as per its agreement with the EU-ECB- IMF troika.
The Government said it would sell the Aer Lingus shares when conditions were “favourable” and at “an acceptable price” to the State.
In reply to a question about when that might be, Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform Brendan Howlin said: “I have no idea. That will be decided by those who know best.”
He did not rule out selling the stake to Ryanair, but said such a proposal would be subject to domestic and EU competition rules, as has been the case in the past.
Ryanair has twice sought to acquire Aer Lingus – each time without success.
Minister for Transport Leo Varadkar said there would be “no firesale of the stake”.
He declined to comment on what price might be acceptable to the Government, having previously indicated that it would seek at least €1-a-share for the State’s holding.
Mr Varadkar would not speculate on when the stake might be sold and cited issues around the company’s pension fund that need to be resolved first.
The Minister said there was no longer any strategic value in owning the Aer Lingus stake.
Aer Lingus’s shares closed unchanged at 94 cent yesterday. That values the Government’s stake at €125.5 million.
Stockbroker NCB yesterday put a price target of €1.33 on the stock, valuing the State’s holding at €177.5 million.
A spokesman for Aer Lingus said the Government’s decision was “a matter for the shareholder”.
“We would welcome anything that increases the liquidity of the shares,” he added.
The airline is due to publish its full-year results for 2011 next Tuesday.