ROME (Reuters) - Italian Industry Minister Stefano Patuanelli said on Tuesday he believed a binding offer for struggling airline Alitalia could be presented by an Oct. 15 deadline, saying the date would not be shifted again.
Italian state-owned railway group Ferrovie dello Stato, U.S. airline Delta (N:DAL) and infrastructure group Atlantia (MI:ATL) have been discussing how to revive Alitalia for months, pushing back various previous deadlines for making a firm proposal.
Patuanelli said in a statement he had met Alitalia's commissioners on Tuesday to discuss the situation.
"The overall situation of the company was examined, and there was an agreement that there are the conditions for a binding proposal to be presented by the buyer consortium by October 15," he said, expressing annoyance over the fact that an offer was not yet forthcoming.
"In this context, we call for responsibility on all sides and speedy decisions, given that the Oct. 15 deadline cannot be prolonged," he said.