AMSTERDAM—Lufthansa may have won the bidding to become a major shareholder in TAP Air Portugal, but combining the two companies’ maintenance, repair and overhaul operations is still far off.
Multiple steps, some not yet decided, remain to be completed before Lufthansa Technik can start taking control of TAP Maintenance and Engineering.
Closing the deal is just the first step, and that alone could take 18-24 months. Even then, it will not trigger consolidation. Lufthansa is acquiring only an initial 44.9% stake in TAP, so the companies will still not be able to coordinate their business activities once the deal closes. “That means working together is essentially limited,” said David Doyle, Lufthansa Technik's corporate strategy vice president, at Aviation Week’s MRO Europe conference and exhibition.
Doyle called the recent announcement that Lufthansa beat out rivals for the stake “a very important first step,” but noted more are required. Lufthansa needs to take a majority stake or ultimately acquire all of the Portuguese carrier to fully integrate operations.
“We will still continue to meet TAP in the market,” he said of the immediate future.
One of the potential areas of cooperation would be in Porto, Portugal. Lufthansa Technik is building a facility in Santa Maria da Feira, close to Porto, specializing in engine parts and aircraft components. It is due to commence operations in 2028. TAP has a CFM International CFM56 and Leap engine maintenance operation in Lisbon.
“We think [the companies] are actually complementary in terms of the capabilities that they have,” Doyle said.
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