Brazilian airline Gol on Wednesday confirmed the acquisition of airline Nova Varig for a total of 320 million U.S. dollars.

Of that amount, 98 million dollars will be paid in cash, while 177 million dollars will be funded by the transfer of 6.1 million Gol shares. The company will also take the responsibility over debentures issued by Nova Varig, which amount to the remaining 45 million dollars.

Following the announcement of the imminent acquisition early Wednesday morning, Gol's stock price rose 4.17 percent to 55.20 reais (26.79 U.S. dollars), while the Sao Paulo Stock Exchange benchmark index was down 1.6 percent.

The acquisition was only confirmed after the market had closed in the evening.

After the acquisition, Gol is expected to transport over 20 million passengers per year. The airline said in a statement that it will be ready to take over the lead position in the Brazilian domestic flights market by the end of this year.

Gol currently holds a 40-percent share of the market led by airline leader TAM, with 47 percent.

Nova Varig's new owners plan to keep the acquired company's market profile, which does not match Gol, a pioneer in low-fare airlines in Brazil. According to the statement, the companies will operate independently.

As Gol only operates international flights to and from some countries of the Southern Common Market (Mercosur), analysts said the acquisition could represent an expansion of the company's portfolio of routes abroad.

Nova Varig accounted for 11.8 percent of all international flights operated by Brazilian airlines in February, according to figures from the National Agency of Civil Aviation.