Ryanair in bidding for Cyprus Airways

Ryanair is in the second round of bidders to take over loss-making Cyprus Airways, chief executive Michael O’Leary said yesterday.

Mr O’Leary said his company would meet with auditor KPMG in Cyprus today, but did not know how the process of selling the loss-making airline, which is more than 90%-owned by the Cypriot government, would proceed.

”We’re down to the second round of bidders. I don’t even know who (else) is in the second round,” Mr O’Leary said after a news conference in Rome.

Cyprus’s transport minister said in September that Greece’s Aegean and Ryanair were among companies that had submitted non-binding bids to acquire Cyprus Airways.

Mr O’Leary said yesterday that he had “no idea” whether Ryanair’s bid would be successful.

”We have said publicly we don’t expect to be successful because we suspect that the Cypriots will probably lean in favour of Aegean,” Mr O’Leary said.

Reuters