Lufthansa Clears 75 Pct Hurdle In Austrian Takeover

Lufthansa said it was offered more than 85 percent of Austrian Airlines' (AUA) shares in its tender offer, meeting one of the conditions it set for its takeover of the Austrian carrier.

The German flagship carrier had said it would need to reach at least a 75 percent stake for the takeover to go through.

For those shareholders who had not yet tendered their shares in the 4.49 euro-per-share public offer, Lufthansa would extend the acceptance period for three months, it said Tuesday.

Lufthansa had agreed in December to buy the loss-making Austrian carrier, expecting the move to make it Europe's biggest airline. As part of the deal, it is taking over Austrian state holding company OeIAG's 42 percent stake in AUA.

The deal also involves the Austrian state assuming around EUR500 million euros (USD$680.4 million) of AUA debt.

Lufthansa last week said it had applied for European Commission approval of the takeover. The Commission now has until June 17 to complete the first phase of its review.

It had launched an investigation into the planned deal in February, saying it had doubts that aid had been kept to a minimum and that Austria's restructuring plan would restore the airline's long-term viability without the need for more funds.

Lufthansa CEO Wolfgang Mayrhuber has said that the carrier would drop its offer to buy AUA if the EU did not approve all the conditions.