VALLETTA (MALTA) (ITALPRESS/MNA) – The Maltese government handed over its remaining stake in Malta Air to Ryanair for just 25,000, following a five-year-old agreement. The move marks the final step in Ryanair’s complete takeover of Malta Air, an airline set up in 2019 amid promises of economic growth. At the time, Ryanair’s holding company, Gulliver Holding Ltd, owned the entirety of the airlinès shares, with the exception of one so-called “golden share” retained by the Maltese government. That share gave authorities limited veto rights, primarily over the airlinès name and any potential sale. However, previously undisclosed details of the founding agreement reveal that this golden share was always intended to be temporary.
A clause titled “Call Option,” signed on June 11, 2019, gave Gulliver the automatic right to purchase the golden share after five years, for a fixed sum of 25,000. Ryanair triggered this clause on May 16, 2024, notifying the Maltese government of its intent to exercise the option. Just under a month later, on June 12, 2024-five years and one day after the agreement’s signing-the deal was completed. The airline was launched with Ryanair operating six aircraft under the Malta Air brand, with plans to expand and develop maintenance facilities locally.
Following the government’s sale of its golden share in Malta Air to Ryanair for 25,000, Prime Minister Robert Abela characterized the transaction as a “commercial transaction” rather than a “deal,” emphasizing that the agreement was executed in line with the contractual obligations established in 2019.
– photo: IPA Agency –
(ITALPRESS).
