European Union anti-trust authorities say they have opened a full investigation into a renewed attempt by Aegean Airlines in Greece to take over its rival, Olympic Air, after it had previously been rejected.
The European Commission said that the merger of the two main Greek airlines offering passenger air transport services on Greek domestic and international routes raised “concerns that the transaction may lead to price increases and poorer service.”
The companies now have until Sept. 3 to respond. “We have the duty to ensure that Greek passengers and people visiting Greece can travel at competitive air fares,” said European Union Competition Commissioner Joaquin Almunia. Attempts at a negotiated solution failed, the EU executive underlined.
Aegean, based in Athens, said in October it would pay 72 million euros ($93.7 million) for Olympic Air to help the two unprofitable airlines benefit from cost savings and an extended network. The Brussels-based commission in 2011 blocked an attempted merger of the two carriers over concerns they would form a quasi-monopoly with likely increases in passenger fares in Greece.
“We have the duty to ensure that Greek passengers and people visiting Greece can travel at competitive air fares, even more so during challenging economic times,” Joaquin Almunia, the EU’s antitrust commissioner, said in an e-mailed statement to Bloomberg news agency.
“We are confident that we will convince the EC that the benefits to the consumers and the economy from the acquisition are very important,” Roula Saloutsi, a spokeswoman for Aegean, said in an e-mail. Aegean in March proposed concessions to the EU to allay any concerns and win approval for its renewed bid.
“We will keep discussing for appropriate remedies,” Saloutsi said. The two airlines “together are a mere 28 percent of the total Greek aviation market and they need the synergies and the size to be viable and develop within such a crisis,” she said.
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