Lisbon, June 12, 2026 (Lusa) - Portugal's minister for infrastructure and housing stated on Friday that TAP is “fully prepared” for privatisation, following the airline’s completion of the restructuring plan agreed with the European Commission.
"With the sale of the subsidiaries and the payment to the state, TAP meets the requirements set out for the completion of the restructuring process and is fully prepared for its partial privatisation," said Miguel Pinto Luz, in response to Lusa.
TAP announced today that it has officially completed the restructuring plan agreed with Brussels in 2021, following the finalisation of the sale of its stakes in Cateringpor and SPdH, formerly Groundforce.
The completion of the plan included the repayment of €24.99 million to the state, as part of a share capital reduction operation approved on 5 June by the Portuguese Republic, through the Treasury and Finance Authority, an amount already paid to the airline’s sole shareholder.
The return of this amount stems from the commitment made by Portugal to Brussels when the deadline for the sale of TAP’s stakes in SPdH and Cateringpor was extended to 30 June 2026.
Following the crisis caused by the Covid-19 pandemic and the reduction in global air traffic, Brussels approved, in December 2021, a restructuring plan for TAP linked to state aid of around €3.2 billion, subject to conditions such as fleet reduction, cost-cutting, operational restructuring and asset disposal.
According to the airline, the divestment processes were finalised on 11 June, enabling it to fulfil the final commitments undertaken under the group’s restructuring plan.
In the case of Cateringpor, TAP completed the sale of 51% of the share capital to the Swiss company Gate Gourmet, which was already a shareholder in the company. The transaction followed the public tender launched at the end of 2025 and the decision announced in April this year.
The company has also finalised the disposal of its entire stake in SPdH, currently held by Menzies, in accordance with the share purchase agreement signed in May and following verification of the applicable conditions precedent, including the necessary regulatory approvals.
The completion of the plan comes at a time when the process of the partial privatisation of TAP, relaunched by the Government in 2025, is underway; this process provides for the sale of up to 49.9% of the company’s capital, with the State remaining the majority shareholder.
At this stage of the process, the Air France-KLM and Lufthansa groups remain in the running and are expected to submit final bids for a stake in the carrier by the next month.
Just today, Air France-KLM reiterated the group’s interest in the privatisation of TAP, arguing that one of the three major European airline groups will be left without a partner in the Iberian Peninsula, and also hinted at the possibility of acquiring assets from EasyJet.
“There are three European groups and two hubs in the Iberian Peninsula. One of them will be left without a partner,” said Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Benjamin Smith during the Paris Air Forum, organised by Aéroports de Paris and the business newspaper La Tribune.
SCR/AYLS // AYLS
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