BRUSSELS (Dow Jones)-The European Commission has set a May 14
deadline in its initial review of German flag carrier Deutsche
Lufthansa AG's (LHA.XE) planned takeover of U.K.'s British Midland
Airways, or bmi, according to a commission document.
By that date, the commission has to clear the deal or launch a
four-month in-depth investigation.
Lufthansa owns a 30% minus one share stake in bmi but intends to
raise the stake to 80% by acquiring 50% plus one share from bmi
founder Sir Michael Bishop.
Scandinavian carrier SAS AB (SAS.SK) owns the remaining 20% in
bmi.
The purchase of Bishop's BMI stake would mark a further step in
Lufthansa's rapid expansion.
Having acquired the airline that emerged from the failure of
Swissair in 2007, Lufthansa embarked on a buying spree in 2008,
taking a 19% stake in a U.S. budget carrier and 45% of the parent
of a small Brussels airline, SN Holding SA.
Lufthansa also plans to fully acquire Austrian Airlines AG
(AUA.VI)
The commission currently is conducting an in-depth investigation
of Lufthansa's takeover of SN Holding, the parent company of
Brussels Airlines. The commission's initial investigation of that
deal showed the combined carriers "could significantly impede
effective competition," particularly for routes between Belgium and
Germany and Belgium and Switzerland.
Web site: www.lufthansa-financials.com
-By Adam Cohen and Jan Hromadko, Dow Jones Newswires; +49 69 29
725 503; jan.hromadko@dowjones.com