Lufthansa and Italian bank UniCredit have met to discuss a possible role for the German airline in a bid for Italian flag carrier Alitalia, Il Messaggero reported on Monday.
Lufthansa wanted three conditions for a deal -- a clear idea of the struggling carrier's finances, a turnaround strategy and that a prospective consortium of Italian investors remove union obstacles, the newspaper said.
UniCredit Chief Executive Alessandro Profumo, through the bank's German unit Bayerische Hypo-und Vereinsbank, met Lufthansa executives in Munich in the last few days to feel out a possible agreement, Il Messaggero said. It did not cite sources for the story.
A Lufthansa spokesman had no comment. A UniCredit spokeswoman said the bank had had no contacts with Lufthansa over Alitalia.
The Italian government has been trying for more than a year to sell the state's 49.9 percent stake in Alitalia. A deal with Air France-KLM fell apart last month over union opposition.
Italian prime minister-elect Silvio Berlusconi has promised that a home-grown consortium to buy Alitalia would soon reveal itself. However, no one with concrete plans to rescue the airline has emerged.
Il Messaggero said Lufthansa wanted to be sure any role would leave its credit rating intact and would be interested in becoming an industrial partner in a restructured Alitalia.
