Aer Lingus is set to accept a takeover bid from the owner of British Airways, after International Airlines Group made a third offer valuing the Dublin-based carrier at around £1bn (€1.3bn).
Aer Lingus is expected to make a statement to the stock exchange on Monday morning confirming the new approach by IAG at around €2.50 a share, having previously rejected bids worth €2.30 and €2.40.
A source close to the negotiations confirmed the Irish company’s board would be recommending IAG’s offer to Aer Lingus shareholders, who include the budget airline Ryanair with a 29.82% stake and the Irish state with 25.11%.
The interest of IAG, which also owns the Spanish airline Iberia as well as BA, stems from its desire for additional Heathrow runway slots controlled by Aer Lingus. Aer Lingus is the fourth busiest operator at London’s Heathrow behind British Airways, Lufthansa and Virgin Atlantic - with its expanding transatlantic routes a particular attraction to IAG.
The Irish airline is well known to IAG boss Willie Walsh, who was chief executive of Aer Lingus between 2001 and 2005 before taking the helm at British Airways and also started his aviation career there in 1979 as a cadet pilot.
Its fortunes have also improved over recent months and under chief executive Christoph Mueller – who is leaving to run Malaysia Airlines . The airline reported the its strongest summer trading performance since the financial crisis, with operating profits up 19% to €112.9m in the quarter to 30 September. The airline carried nearly 25% more long-haul passengers in the period compared with a year earlier while increasing its revenue per seat.
IAG and Aer Lingus both declined to comment.
