Lisbon, July 15, 2026 (Lusa) - Portugal's minister for infrastructure and housing, Miguel Pinto Luz, said on Wednesday that the process of selling part of TAP should not be limited to price alone and requires “careful consideration and discretion”.

“A proposal of this nature is, obviously, complex and involves many factors that must be analysed. This is a strategic decision which should not be limited to price alone and which, for this reason, requires careful consideration and discretion,” said Miguel Pinto Luz at the opening of the parliamentary hearing.

The minister added that there will be further developments in this process “by the end of the month”, with binding bids due by 29 July.

“This is another important step in this process, which is also the result of cross-party consensus, moderation and pragmatism,” he argued.

Acknowledging that this is “a matter that is generating a great deal of interest”, the minister said that the government would continue to “handle it with great calm and composure”.

Regarding the new Lisbon airport, Pinto Luz added that ANA would submit the technical report on Friday, the third of the five bid reports.

“This is a comprehensive technical and engineering project, in which the details of what the new airport will look like have already been defined: the runways, the taxiways, the stands and the terminals,” he added.

“Following this report, we will receive the financial report in January and, a year later, the final proposal,” the minister said.

The process of the partial privatisation of TAP, relaunched by the government in 2025, provides for the sale of up to 49.9% of the company’s share capital, with the state retaining a majority stake.

At this stage of the process, the Air France-KLM and Lufthansa groups remain in the running.

JO/ADB // ADB.

Lusa