IAG International Airlines Group still intends to take full ownership of Air Europa (UX, Palma de Mallorca), but the protracted deal is likely to take at least another 18 months to complete, the group’s chief executive Luis Gallego commented at an economic forum in Madrid on April 6.

The Iberia and British Airways parent has been looking at alternative ways to achieve the long-planned takeover since both the Covid pandemic and antitrust concerns prevented previous attempts at an agreement, and acquiring Air Europa remains IAG’s final goal, he said.

“The ultimate goal is the acquisition of Air Europa, which is how it all started in 2019. We have to decide on a timeline to take 100%, but I think it could take at least 18 months,” Gallego said during the Wake Up Spain event.

Acknowledging that “the soap opera continues” - in an economic context as complicated as the current one - the aim of a tie-up is to give Spain the opportunity to turn Madrid Barajas into one of the biggest hubs in Europe and the largest in southern Europe, he said according to local media.

IAG will have to secure approvals in several countries to allay monopoly concerns, the CEO added. He declined to speculate on how much the group would be willing to pay for Air Europa.

Spain’s government has also been involved in the talks since it approved its EUR475 million euro (USD518 million) bailout for Air Europa in November 2020, part of which can be converted into equity.

Last month, IAG kept the talks alive by reaching a deal to negotiate exclusively with Air Europa parent Globalia for one year in exchange for a EUR100 million (USD109 million) loan that can be turned into a 20% shareholding in the carrier.

Also at the event, Gallego said that International Airlines Group expects to operate at 90% of its pre-pandemic capacity this summer, with a 100% recovery in seats in the North Atlantic market and 95% on routes to Latin America. IAG targets a 100% resumption in Europe by the end of the year.

In related news, Spain’s National Court (Audiencia Nacional) has agreed that Globalia can delay payment of a debt of around EUR20 million to the Spanish Tax Agency pending receipt of the EUR100 million from IAG, La Información reported on April 6. The court noted that the tourism company still operates in a context strongly marked by the pandemic and said Globalia must present a guarantee in the next two months to safeguard the sum if it wants to further postpone payment. A legal dispute over the sum, which relates to corporate tax on profits obtained in 2009 and 2010, dates back more than five years.